Staying Fit
The vast majority of older Americans, including those who voted for President Donald Trump, are opposed to the “age tax” in the proposed American Health Care Act (AHCA), which would hike the cost of health insurance for people over age 50.
That is a key finding of a poll of 605 Americans over age 50 who voted in the 2016 election. It was conducted March 10-13 by the Benenson Strategy Group, a Democratic polling firm, in conjunction with GS Strategy Group, a Republican polling firm.
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The poll also found the majority of older Americans — as well as Trump supporters — opposes limits on Medicaid spending and supports action to lower the costs of prescription drugs.
“Older Americans want affordable health care, including less-expensive prescription drugs and continued protections for the most vulnerable,” said AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond. “When Americans over age 50 look at the details of the House health care reform plan, they don’t like what they see. They don’t want big insurance and drug companies to reap massive profits at their expense.”
The poll found:
- More than half of all respondents (55 percent) — including a majority (51 percent) of older Trump voters — agree that allowing insurance companies to charge people ages 50-64 five times as much as younger adults for the same coverage amounts to an age tax on older Americans.
- Nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of all respondents — including a majority (55 percent) of Trump voters — believe that Congress should keep funding for Medicaid where it is now.
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