As Senate Republicans debate the GOP tax bill, recent polling confirms yet again that a majority of Americans strongly oppose their scheme to slash Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act to fund tax breaks for the wealthy. As a result, 16 million Americans will lose life-saving coverage, including seniors, kids, people with disabilities, and hardworking families. Medicaid, the largest health insurance program in the country, remains widely popular across the board, with voters in both parties opposing any cuts. This polling shows that Republicans will face consequences at the ballot box when Americans find out they’re slashing health care and ripping coverage from millions to cover tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations.
Hart Research for Families Over Billionaires, Center for America Progress Action, and Protect Our Care: Republicans’ Billionaire Tax Scam Toxically Unpopular with American Voters.
- The major elements of the Republican budget bill – cuts to Medicaid, cuts to SNAP, and tax breaks for the wealthy – are extremely unpopular. 70% of voters expressed major concern over the bill raising families’ costs for groceries and health care through cuts to SNAP, Medicaid, and ACA tax credits. 70% of voters expressed major concern over the bill raising costs on 80 million poor and middle class households.
- Among voters who supported Donald Trump in 2024, but with reservations, only 46% support the bill.
- Before hearing any messaging, only 38% of voters support Republicans’ budget bill. After voters hear a neutral, factual description of the main elements of the bill, as shown below, opposition jumps by 15 points, from 46% to 61% – including 65% opposition from swing voters.
Navigator: Following the Passage of House Republicans’ Budget Plan, Initial Reactions of Battleground Constituents Are Negative and Grow More Sour as They Learn More.
- A majority of Americans living in House battleground districts say they oppose the budget plan (net -12; 40 percent support – 52 percent oppose), including independents by 17 points (33 percent support – 50 percent oppose). This comes as a whopping 79 percent of battleground constituents have heard at least some about the budget plan that Republicans in Congress have passed.
- The most strongly opposed policies in the budget plan are the tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans and cuts to programs Americans depend on:
- This budget bans Medicaid payments to health care providers that provide abortion services, even when the services they are providing are not abortion related (54 percent strongly oppose);
- This budget gives the largest billionaire tax cut in history, paid for by making devastating cuts to Medicaid (52 percent strongly oppose);
- This budget makes the largest cuts to Medicaid in U.S. history, which independent auditors estimate will cause 7.6 million Americans to lose their health insurance, including veterans, seniors, children, pregnant women, and people with disabilities (50 percent strongly oppose);
- This budget raises health insurance costs by as much as $4,000 by ending tax credits for people and businesses who buy their health insurance on their own (50 percent strongly oppose); and,
- This budget cuts more than $500 billion from Medicare (50 percent strongly oppose).
KFF: A Majority of the Public Worry About the Consequences of Proposed Medicaid Cuts.
- About seven in ten adults (72%) are worried that a significant reduction in federal funding for Medicaid would lead to an increase in the share of uninsured children and adults in the U.S.
- Seven in ten adults say they are worried that if the federal government significantly reduces its spending on Medicaid, there will be negative impacts on hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care providers in their communities (71%).
- Over half (54%) of U.S. adults are worried that reductions in federal Medicaid spending would negatively impact their own or their family’s ability to get and pay for health care.
Blue Rose Research: Only a Quarter of Voters Think the Republican Tax Bill Will Help Them and Their Families.
- Just 25% of voters think the tax bill will help them and their families. 51% of voters (including 51% of swing voters) in critical battleground districts and states think Congress should be prioritizing lowering the cost of living and strengthening government programs like Medicaid. Just 38% of voters in these districts and states prefer the GOP’s focus on tax giveaways to the wealthiest Americans.
Data for Progress: Voters Do Not Support the GOP Reconciliation Bill’s Tax and Spending Proposals.
- While the GOP reconciliation plan is likely to contain hundreds of billions of dollars in Medicaid cuts, only 10% of voters support these cuts.