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St. Paul, Minn. – A new Mason-Dixon poll, sponsored
by the Minnesota Council of Health Plans, shows that Minnesotans
place health care second only to education in terms of issues
likely to have the greatest effect on their vote in the next
election. Of those who said health care was their most important
election issue, 36 percent said Medicare and health care for
the elderly was the most important issue, 32 percent cited
cost and affordability of health care and 18 percent emphasized
access to health care and universal coverage. HMO reform was
listed as the priority for only 5 percent of those who listed
health care as their top concern (1.8 percent of the total
number who participated in the survey).
"The poll reflects the deep feelings that Minnesota
voters have about health care access - especially when it
comes to taking care of the elderly and making sure that health
care coverage is affordable," said Michael Scandrett,
executive director of the Minnesota Council of Health Plans.
"Lawmakers may have lost interest, but Minnesotans have
not forgotten about the uninsured."
Minnesota's rate of uninsured is approximately 6 - 9 percent,
far below the national average of about 15 percent. Still,
about 285,000 Minnesotans have no health insurance.
Under the current federal Medicare reimbursement formula,
Minnesota seniors receive fewer benefits at higher premiums
than seniors in many other states. For example, the federal
government pays $763 per month for a senior in Miami and only
$414 per month for a senior in Minneapolis or St. Paul and
$367 for a senior in Duluth.
"It's not surprising that Medicare is at the top of
the list of health care issues, when Minnesota seniors continue
to get shortchanged by the federal government," said
Scandrett.
Most Minnesota voters put affordability of health care as
their number one issue. When asked which health care issue
should be the highest priority for presidential candidates,
40 percent of Minnesota voters said keeping health insurance
affordable, 26 percent said making sure that Medicare is financially
sound, and 21 percent said making sure everyone is covered
by health care. Only 9 percent said reforming HMOs should
be the highest priority, and the poll found that two-thirds
of Minnesotans would oppose more government regulation if
it raised their premiums by $19 or more per month.
"We do not interpret this poll to mean that policy-makers
should not address federal patient protections. It simply
means that patient protections should not overshadow other
priorities such as Medicare, affordability and access, and
they should not result in higher health care costs,"
Scandrett noted.
The poll found that voters have a high degree of skepticism
about politicians' motives when it comes to patient protection
legislation. Seventy-nine percent said politicians who make
an issue of regulating HMOs are trying to gain political advantage.
Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, Inc. of Washington, D.C.,
conducted the poll of 624 registered Minnesota voters via
telephone from July 9 through July 12, 1999. The sample reflects
a cross-section of Minnesota voters proportionately according
to age, gender, region and political party. The poll's margin
of error is no more than plus or minus four percentage points.
Established in 1985, The Minnesota Council of Health Plans
is a trade association representing Minnesota's nonprofit
HMOs, health plans and coordinated care systems.
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