Most Americans disapprove of cuts to federal Medicare and Medicaid programs, a Northeastern University survey finds, including a majority of both Democratic and Republican voters. Conducted from April to June by Northeastern’s Civic Health and Institutions Project (CHIP50), the survey of more than 33,000 adults across the country finds that 68% of Americans disapprove of cuts to Medicaid and 76% disapprove of cuts to Medicare.
Broken down by political affiliation, 86% of Democrats and 64% of Republicans disapprove of cuts to Medicare, and 82% of Democrats and 51% of Republicans disapprove of cuts to Medicaid. “We talk about partisan polarization, and there are big partisan differences,” says David Lazer, University Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Computer Sciences and principal investigator at CHIP50. “But the majorities of Democrats and Republicans are on the same side of this issue. It wasn’t inevitable that that was the case.”
Details about the survey findings are available on the CHIP50 website. Medicare supports health care for people 65 years of age and older, while Medicaid eligibility is determined by an income threshold that varies from state to state.
