Two-thirds of uninsured Americans aren’t sure if they’ll buy insurance via the new marketplaces established under the Affordable Care Act, a new poll indicates.
Only 19 percent of those polled said they planned to buy coverage by the Jan. 1, 2014, deadline, pollsters found. And 10 percent said they would remain uninsured and pay the Obamacare penalty required in 2014 by federal law.
The survey, conducted for InsuranceQuotes.com, was conducted in early May.
About six in 10 of those without health insurance said they didn’t have coverage because they couldn’t afford the premiums — one of the main problems being addressed by Obamacare and its system of subsidies for lower-income families. And almost 7 in 10 survey respondents making $30,000 or less per year said they didn’t know if they’d be eligible for government help with their premiums — which all of them would be.
“The tax credits are really hard for people to understand,” said Christine Barber, a senior policy analyst for Community Catalyst, a health care advocacy organization.
The phone poll of 1,001 adults by Princeton Survey Research Associates International had a margin of error of of 3.6 percent. PSRAI also handles polling for the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, which has been closely tracking the Affordable Care Act.
Six in 10 of those polled expected health care costs to go up under the Affordable Care Act. Only a quarter of the respondents said the costs would decrease.
Despite active coverage in the media, numerous surveys show widespread confusion over Obamacare’s provisions and its benefits for low-income earners. Health care activists fear people will continue to go uninsured because of their ignorance — and probably will be hit with the federal penalty for doing so.
Many low-income individuals and families will qualify for coverage through Medicaid based solely on their income, at least in states that expand Medicaid.
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