Attitude Survey on Healthcare Reform

¶ … Attitude Survey on Healthcare Reform

Healthcare reform is a heated debate in America right now. People have demonstrated not just interest in President Obama's proposed legislation, and the versions offered by the House and Senate, but have shown heightened levels of anxiety, anger, and concern for both for and against it. This attitude survey is designed to gain insight into the survey population's attitude on healthcare reform. The survey is focused on their understanding of healthcare insurance and the delivery of healthcare services as it exists today, and what they believe reform would mean to them. The understanding that they demonstrate on this attitude survey will reveal whether or not their attitudes, thusly, their emotional responses to it, are being led by their understanding of the issue, or lack thereof; or if they are being led by political party affiliation and rhetoric.

A recent Republican victory over the Democratic Senate seat in Massachusetts left open by the death of Senator Ted Kennedy, an openly outspoken and strong advocate of healthcare reform leads to certain conclusions about people's understanding of healthcare and healthcare reform. President Obama's campaign for the office of President of the United States involved much discussion on healthcare reform. Obama, with Kennedy's endorsement, which was considered by many a key to his successful party nomination, won the presidential election by an overwhelming margin of voter turnout that defied party affiliation. Now, healthcare reform has become a pivotal issue for the people in America, and the recent election of Republican Scott Brown to fill Kennedy's vacant seat in the Senate once again shows that voters in that state crossed party lines in making a statement against healthcare reform (CNN, 2009, found online). There is a need to understand how well voters understand the issue of the current healthcare crisis in America.

The Hypothesis

The hypothesis here arises out of the emotional responses people have demonstrated during the debates on healthcare and healthcare reform. There is clearly a problem with the healthcare system in America: it is broken. Healthcare reform would help bring about the delivery and access to health services to millions of people who now have little or no access to care because they do not qualify for government programs (Medicaid and Medicare), and whose lack of prior coverage or incomes prevent them from having health insurance through private plans or group benefit programs.

The hypothesis here is that people have indeed been influenced by party partisanship, and that they are not basing their support or lack thereof for healthcare reform on an understanding of healthcare benefits and access to health services.

The Survey Design

The survey is a simple survey, designed to demonstrate the causal and spurious relationships between healthcare reform (X) and the changes it has, or has not, produced in voters (Y), and whether or not the political party partisanship, understanding/education (Z) of healthcare reform has influenced their attitudes on healthcare reform away from reform, which would be contradictive of their support and vote for Obama, who was very outspoken and focused on healthcare reform during is bid for election.

Causal Relationship between X and Y (Monette, Sullivan, and DeJong, 2008)

X (Healthcare Reform) -Y (Voter)

Spurious Relationship between X and Y When Controlling for Z (Understanding/Education)

Z>

By designing the survey around the individual's knowledge of healthcare benefits and access to services, we can demonstrate that people either understand healthcare benefits and access to services in the healthcare system; or that they do not understand it. Thereby we can conclude if their support or lack thereof for healthcare reform is based on understanding of facts, or is being shaped by other factors, ostensibly the information being made public by politically affiliated media and elected officials in support of one party or the other.

The Survey: Healthcare Reform

I voted for President Obama

YES

NO

Didn't Vote

I support healthcare reform

YES

NO

No Opinion

I have health insurance or Government Program

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have Medicare

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have Medicaid

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have CHAMP/VA

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have TRICARE

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have group benefit insurance

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have private health insurance

YES

NO

Don't Know

The Health Insurance Privacy

And Portability Act applies to me

YES

NO

Don't Know

The Employee Retirement Income

Security Act applies to me

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have an insurance deductible

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have no insurance deductible

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have an out of pocket expense on Doctor visits

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have a copay expense on Doctor visits

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have an in network and out of Network benefit level

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have paid higher out of pocket

Expenses in the past 5 years because

I used an out of network provider

YES

NO

Don't Know

I must get authorization from my

Managed care or Primary care

Doctor before receiving care

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have been denied services in The past 5 years because I did get

Prior authorization

YES

NO

Don't Know

My primary care physician is in Network with my health plan

YES

NO

Don't Know

I chose my primary care physician

Without concern of whether he/she was

In network or out of network with my

Health insurance plan

YES

NO

Don't Know

I have been turned down for health