Poll: 60 percent believe ObamaCare will raise healthcare costs

Most voters believe that ObamaCare will lead to higher healthcare costs and lower quality of coverage, according to a new poll.

The survey released Tuesday by The Morning Consult found that 60 percent believe ObamaCare will likely increase their healthcare costs in the long run. Twenty-eight percent said their costs would likely remain unchanged, and 11 said they believed their costs would go down.

{mosads}Voters also believe the Affordable Care Act’s impact on the quality of and availability of their coverage will be more negative than positive. Only 23 percent said the law would have a positive impact on the quality and availability of their coverage, against 37 percent who said it would have a negative impact. Forty-percent percent said their coverage would likely remain about the same.

Forty-one percent said the healthcare law would make their lives worse, 35 percent said it would have no effect, and only 24 percent said it would make their lives better.

Despite these negative views, the public is strongly against repealing, defunding, or delaying the law. According to the survey, 62 percent said Congress should either make changes to improve ObamaCare, allow it to take effect as it is, or expand on it. Only 34 percent said it should be repealed, defunded, or delayed.

Overall, 41 percent approve of the healthcare law, down from 45 percent last month. Fifty-three percent said they disapprove, up from 50 percent last month. Independents strongly disapprove of the healthcare law, by a margin of 61 to 32 percent.

The data underscores the tough road Democrats face in the 2014 midterm elections. The law is more unpopular now than it was during the 2010 campaign cycle, when Republicans picked up 63 seats in the House and six in the Senate.

Political prognosticator Nate Silver said this week Republicans are “slight favorites” to win between six and 11 seats and capture the Senate this November.

Republicans have vowed to make ObamaCare the primary focus of the 2014 midterm elections, and have already begun hammering vulnerable Democrats for supporting the law. Democrats are just now saying they plan to go on the offensive over the healthcare law.

The Morning Consult poll of 2,192 likely voters was conducted through an online survey between March 9 and 11. It has a 2-percentage point margin of error.