Poll: Most Americans say Medicare is worth the cost

CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto.

Most Americans think Medicare is worth the cost to taxpayers, according to a new CBS News/ New York Times poll, but Republicans are split on the issue. However, when asked whether the government has a responsibility to provide health coverage to the elderly, most Republicans say it does.

The new poll, conducted April 15 -20, underscores the politically risky step House Republicans have taken by endorsing a 2012 budget plan from House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (Wis.), which would dramatically transform the Medicare program.

At the same time, the poll shows that most Americans think it will be necessary to make changes to Medicare in order to reduce the budget deficit. Additionally, nearly half of Americans said they could tolerate some cuts to the program to reduce the deficit.

Ryan's plan promises to cut $389 billion in Medicare expenses over 10 years, largely by indexing the growth of Medicare to inflation. And starting in 2022 under the proposal, seniors entering Medicare would be given limited "premium support" to cover the cost of coverage from private insurers instead of the current government-run health coverage.

Ryan's plan would also change Medicaid, which serves low-income families, from a government-run insurance program to a system of block grants distributed to states.

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While conservatives have praised the plan for confronting some of the nation's largest deficit-drivers, liberals have decried the proposal, saying it places the burden of deficit reduction on the poor and elderly. President Obama has said deficit reduction is necessary, but at a town hall event yesterday, he criticized the GOP's budget plan as one that "is fairly radical" and not "particularly courageous."

According to the new poll, 61 percent of Americans think Medicare is currently worth the costs. As many as 78 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of Independents say it is worth it, but just 45 percent of Republicans agree. Forty-four percent of Republicans say it's not worth it. Among Tea Party supporters, 41 percent say the cost is worth it, while 46 percent say it's not.

Overall, a majority of Americans, 76 percent, thinks government has the responsibility to provide health care coverage for the elderly, and 56 percent say the same for the poor. Once again, however, there are partisan differences.

Republicans, at 55 percent, are less likely than Democrats (88 percent) or independents (79 percent) to say the government has a responsibility to provide health coverage to the elderly. Forty percent of Republicans say that's not the government's responsibility. Tea Party supporters, meanwhile, are split -- 47 percent say it's the government's responsibility, and 48 percent say it's not.

Most Democrats (73 percent) and independents (61 percent) say the government has a responsibility to provide coverage to the poor, while just 25 percent of Republicans agree. Most Republicans (71 percent) and most Tea Party supporters (78 percent) say it's not.

Given the choice to cut government spending on either Medicare, Social Security or the military, most Americans would prefer to leave Medicare alone - only 21 percent would cut it, while 45 percent would cut defense first. Seventeen percent would trim Social Security.

That doesn't mean, however, Americans think Medicare will go untouched in future rounds of deficit-cutting. Most Americans - 57 percent - think it will be necessary to make changes in the program in order to lower the federal deficit.

If Medicare does have to be cut, 48 percent of Americans are willing to go along. However, there are big differences by age group, and willingness to make cuts in Medicare declines as Americans get older.

Americans are mixed on the idea of trying to reduce the deficit by changing Medicare to allow seniors to purchase private health insurance - 47 percent approve of the idea, while 41 percent disapprove. Among seniors, 55 percent oppose the idea, while most young people, who are years away from using Medicare, back it (53 percent).

Yet most Americans - eight in 10 - say they are concerned changes to programs like Medicare or Social Security would impact Americans' ability to stay in the middle-class.

Rather than cuts to Medicare, Americans would prefer that recipients pay more into the system, especially higher-income Medicare recipients.

Fifty-six percent would rather see Medicare recipients pay more in taxes than have the benefits of future retirees cut. And 49 percent would like to see higher-income recipients pay more, compared to 24 percent who would raise the age Medicare recipients get their benefits, 11 percent who would raise premiums for all recipients, or 5 percent who would have fewer medical treatments covered.

PDF: Read the complete poll results

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This poll was conducted among a random sample of 1,224 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone April 15-20, 2011. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups is higher. An oversample of Republicans was also conducted for this poll, for a total of 543 interviews among this group. The results were then weighted in proportion to the average party distributions in previous 2011 CBS News and CBS News/New York Times Polls and in the random sample in this poll. The margin of error for Republicans is plus or minus four percentage points.

[sjc_1]

Medical care costs TWICE as much as it should. Decades of price rises far greater than inflation have left health care in the U.S. a bloated gravy train that is killing the country.

[simpleconservative]

Medicare is at the heart of rising medical costs. Doctors and Hospitals have to charge $12.00 for an aspirin in order to get a 20 cent reimbursement. The cheapskate nature of medicare reimbursements is the direct cause of medical cost inflation and responsible for the overall problem of rising costs. Get government out of healthcare as history proves that any industries government touches rapidly turn into fertilizer!

[babooph]

Anyone can see that removing the crooked ins co from sucking 33% of the healthcare $$$ is great,but if the lobbyists would give me the same bribe the media & politicians get,I too would lie like hell to keep them ripping it off...

[slatep]

It is mostly younger people who support cuts in Medicare, because they resent paying the other persons medical bills.

Young people often think they are invincible and cannot see far enough into the future to realize they will all be over 55 someday.

When I was 25, 35 and so on, it never even occured to me that someday I would be 55 or older.

The government is encouraging everyone to "look to the future".

Right now the future looks pretty bleak to everyone, but I would ask of myself and other young people to look toward the day they turn 55.

[cktirumalai]

In the 2008 election a majority of seniors voted for JOhn McCain just as a majority of the young chose Barack Obama. A fight is now on between Democrats and Republicans for the senior vote in 2012. On the face of it Democrats have the edge at the moment for that vote because while they want to tweak Medicare to bring about savings, influential voices in the GOP wish to replace the present system with annual vouchers for seniors with which they can in the future buy their own private insurance . Much depends on whether Republicans can convince seniors that if Medicare continues to operate as it does at present the entire program will fold in the future on account of its financial insolvency.
Candadai Tirumalai

[WorkingForaLiving]

Health Insurance companies (which made RECORD profits last year...during a recession!!) raise their premiums 8-15% a year. NO WAY will the Republican voucher scam keep pace and the elderly will be screwed. The Republican scheme is just a way to transfer the country's wealth to corporations. MILLIONS of people were dropped from health insurance companies last year...just imagine what these greedy companies will do with our parents if this scam is implemented. If this SCAM was SOO viable and good for the American people they would implement it RIGHT NOW...not 10 years from now.

[slatep]

OF COURSE MEDICARE IS WORTH IT.!!

Caption under a cartoon depicting two young women: "I want to have my children while my parents are still young enough to raise them".

If all the grannies are dead from lack of medical care and the medications they need, is Paul Ryan going to take on the responsibility.?

[askagain]

Medicare is one of the few government programs which affect virtually all Americans if they live long enough. Unlike, many programs designed to benefit certain groups within society such as the poor or disabled, everyone knows that they can expect health care coverage in retirement when it is the most expensive and hardest to get. Wouldn't you expect the same answer if you asked people if they preferred a public school system paid by taxpayers (even those without children) or a private school system where only people with children have to cough-up the money for it each year? This poll shouldn't surprise people.

[tsigili]

Medicare for seniors, is not actually the problem. Medicaid, or welfare (actually), for younger people, is the major problem.

Seniors, should not be impacted because the government uses medicaid for welfare, for young people.

[RobAla]

If you look at the numbers in the polling, it matches exactly what Paul Ryan's plan does. His plan leaves those 55 and older on the current Medicare plan, and it gives those younger private sector options. It is the right way to go, and this poll shows that Americans are in agreement if they understand what the plan is.

One of the problems that we have is that Medicare and Social Security have both been horribly mismanaged by the politicians (from both parties) in Washington - to the extent that both programs are in danger of going bankrupt.

How does President Obama not understand that increasing taxes on businesses and people making more than $200,000 will, result in higher unemployment? If a business has to use the money it has for hiring an additional worker to send to the federal government in higher taxes - it equals JOB LOST. If people making more than $200,000 have to use money for purchasing a service or good from a business to send to the federal government in higher taxes - it means that businesses have less activity and it equals JOB LOST. The President has to understand this, but he must be thinking that he can confiscate more money from less people.

We have two concepts of deficit reduction here:
1) Paul Ryan's Plan: Cut government a lot, requiring far less revenue to run the government. Lower taxes on business, but get rid of the tax loopholes. This enables businesses to be more able to afford additional workers, and additional workers paying taxes will send more revenue to the government. It also diminishes the power of lobbyist to control government, and gives more power back to the people.

2) President Obama's Plan: Cut the federal government only a little, causing a greater need for revenue to run the government. Try to make up the ground by increasing taxes on businesses and those making more than $200,000. It will result in higher unemployment, and that means less people paying taxes. He just hopes to collect more from less people. Without getting rid of tax loopholes, it leaves the lobbyists in power in Washington.

My vote is for option 1. Paul Ryan's plan leaves the Medicare as it is for those 55 and over, but offers options to those younger. We HAVE to do something, as continuing what we are doing is UNSUSTAINABLE (says the CBO and President Obama's Deficit Commission