Health Care 2012 - Knowledge and Favorability

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AMERICANS’ATTITUDESTOWARD

THEAFFORDABLECAREACT:WOULDBETTERPUBLIC

UNDERSTANDINGINCREASEOR

DECREASEFAVORABILITY?

WENDY GROSS1

TOBIAS H. STARK2

JON KROSNICK3

JOSH PASEK4

GAURAV SOOD5

TREVOR TOMPSON6

JENNIFER AGIESTA7

DENNIS JUNIUS8

ThisresearchwasconductedwithsupportfromtheRobertWoodJohnsonFoundation,GfK,

StanfordUniversity,andtheAssociatedPress.TheauthorsthankArthurLupiaandMichaelTomz

forhelpfulcommentsonthismanuscript.

1GfK.wendy.gross@gfk.com2StanfordUniversityandUtrechtUniversity.t.h.stark@uu.nl3StanfordUniversity.krosnick@stanford.edu4UniversityofMichigan.jpasek@umich.edu5PrincetonUniversity,[email protected]‐NORCCenterforPublicAffairsResearch.tompson‐[email protected]@[email protected]



Abstract Nationalsurveysconductedin2010and2012suggestthefollowingconclusions:

‐ AmericanunderstandingofwhatisandisnotintheACAhasbeenfarfromperfect.

‐ Correctunderstandingoftheelementsofthebillweexaminedvariedwithparty

identification:Democratsunderstoodthemost,independentsless,andRepublicansstill

less.

‐ Olderpeopleandmoreeducatedpeoplehaveunderstoodtheelementsofthebillwe

examinedbetterthanhaveyoungerandlesseducatedpeople.

‐ Between2010and2012,publicunderstandingoftheelementsofthebillweexamined

didnotchangenotably.

‐ MostpeoplehavefavoredmostoftheelementsoftheACAthatweexamined,butnot

everyonerecognizedthattheseelementswereallintheplan.

‐ Mostpeopleopposedpoliciesthatweresometimesfalselythoughttobepartsofthe

ACA..

‐ Ifthepublichadperfectunderstandingoftheelementsthatweexamined,the

proportionofAmericanswhofavorthebillmightincreasefromthecurrentlevelof32%

to70%.

Takentogether,allthissuggeststhatifeducationeffortsweretocorrectpublicmisunderstandingofthebill,publicfavorabilitymightincreaseconsiderably.



1

Introduction

ThePatientProtectionandAffordableCareActof2010(ACA)enactedaseriesofsignificant

changestotheAmericanhealthcaresystem.The900‐page‐longbill,whichelicitedanextremely

partisanreactionandsubstantialnewsmediainterest,amendedtheU.S.codetopreventinsurance

companiesfromdenyingcoverageforpre‐existingconditions,provideforhealthcareexchanges

whereindividualscouldpurchasecaredirectly,requireallindividualstohavehealthinsuranceor

payafine,andmore.InJune,2012,theU.S.SupremeCourtupheldacentralelementofthislaw.

Publicdebateaboutthebillcalledattentiontomanyaspectsofthelawthatwereincluded

intheversionthatCongressapproved.Butduringthecourseofpublicdebate,anumberof

inaccurateclaimsweremade,assertingthatthebillincludedprovisionsthatwerenotincludedin

thefinalversion.Someofthewidelydiscussedcomponentswerepartofthelegislation,suchasthe

plantoallowchildrentostayontheirparents’healthplanthroughage26.Butotherwidely

discussednotionswereneverconsideredforinclusion,suchastheclaimthatapanelofbureaucrats

coulddecidewhencoveragewouldbegiven(theso‐called“deathpanels”).Thelegislationincludedavarietyofless‐oftendiscussedprovisions,suchaschargingafeetoinsurancecompaniesthat

offeredparticulartypesofinsurance.

Manysurveyswereconductedbothbeforethebill’spassageandafteritsenactmentto

gaugetheAmericanpublic’sreactiontoit.Inearly2010,publicopinionwasfairlyevenlysplit.For

example,accordingtoaKaiserFamilyFoundation(KFF)surveyinAprilofthatyear,46%of

Americanssaidtheyhadafavorableopinionofthebill,and40%saidtheyhadanunfavorable

opinion.Ayearlater,inApril2011,KFFreportedthesetwostatisticstobe41%and41%,

respectively.AndinJanuary2012,thefigureswere37%and44%,respectively,perhapssuggesting

aslightshiftintheunfavorabledirectionastimehaspassed.InMay2012,thefigureswere

identical:37%and44%,solidifyingevidenceofthatslightshift.AndinAugust2012,thesefigureswere38%and43%,respectively.

AsimilarportraitwaspaintedbyAP‐GfKpolls.InMay,2010,39%ofrespondentssaidthey

supportedtheACA,and46%saidtheyopposedit.InJune,2012,thosenumberswere33%and

47%,respectively.Thus,asmalldecreaseintheproportionsupporting,andasmallincreaseinthe

proportionopposing.

Surveysdonebyotherorganizationsprovidedsimilar,thoughnotidentical,portraitsofthe

balanceandtrajectoryofopinions.Forexample,aNBCNews/WallStreetJournalpolldoneinMay,

2010,found38%ofrespondentssayingtheythoughttheACAwasagoodidea,and44%saiditwas

abadidea.AsofJune,2012,thatorganizationfoundthesefigurestobe35%and41%.Thus,theproportionexpressingapositiveopiniondroppedslightly,liketheKFFpolls.Buttheproportion

expressinganegativeopinionalsodroppedslightly.

Onlyoneprominentnationalsurveyresearchorganization,ThePewResearchCenter,

reportedresultssuggestingmovementintheoppositedirection.InJanuary,2011,41%oftheir

respondentsapprovedoftheACA,and48%opposed.Theirmostrecentsurvey,inJune‐July,2012,

foundthat47%approved,and43%opposed.



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Puttogether,mostnationalsurveysduringthelasttwoyearssupporttwoprincipal

conclusions:(1)publicopinionhasnotmanifestedasizableandconsistentleaningtowardbeing

favorableorunfavorabletowardtheACA,and(2)aslightshiftinthenegativedirectionmayhave

occurredsincethelawwaspassed.

ItwouldbeunderstandabletolookatsuchevidenceasanindicationthattheAmericanpublicdoesnotstronglysupportthispieceoflegislation.Afterall,ifaboutasmanypeoplefavorit

asopposeit,andifwehaveneverseenamajorityfavoringit,thathardlysendsastrongsignalof

support.Furthermore,itiseasytoimaginethatsincepassageofthebill,Americanshavehadtime

toconsiderthebillanditsimplicationsinmoreandmoredepth,andifsuchconsiderationleadstoa

shiftinthenegativedirection,thatcertainlysignalsquitetheoppositeofenthusiasm.Thus,such

datacouldbetakenasasignalthatRepublicaneffortstorepealthebillwouldbewarmlywelcomed

byagrowinggroupofAmericans.

Atthesametime,theverysamepollingevidencecanbeviewedfromtheopposite

viewpoint.AlthoughamajorityofAmericanshavenotfavoredthebill,itisalsotruethatamajority

haveneveropposedit,either.Andevenaftertherecentsmallincreaseinopposition,theproportionopposingitdoesnotexceed50%.Sodirectquestionsaskingaboutpositivevs.negative

evaluationsoftheplanhavenotdocumentedamandatefromthepublictorepealthebill.9Taken

together,allthisevidenceportraystheAmericanpublicinwhatmightseematypicalway:split

aboutevenly,andnotprovidingaclearmandatetoelectedrepresentativesonewayoranother.

Itwouldthereforenotbeunreasonableforthoserepresentativestolookatthispolling

evidence,reachthatconclusion,andproceedtotakeactionsinkeepingwiththeguardianshipview

ofdemocracy:decidingwhattheyfeelisbestforthecountryandtakingaction(ordoingnothing)

accordingly,regardlessofpublicopinion.

Suchignoringofpublicopinionmightalsobejustifiedfromanotherperspectiveaswell.Insomanysurvey‐basedinvestigationsoftheAmericanpublicformanydecades,peoplehavebeen

foundtoperformquitepoorlyonquizzesassessingfactualknowledgeaboutdomainsinwhich

significantlegislationhasbeenconsideredorpassed.Ifmostpeoplelackthefactsneededtotruly

understandtheproblemstobesolvedbyapieceoflegislationandthesolutionsofferedbythat

legislation,whyshouldpublicevaluationsofthelegislationbetakenseriously?Thatis,thepublic

mightfeelverydifferentlyiftheytrulyunderstoodabill,soopinionsbasedonpartialinformation

orsubstantialmisconceptionscancertainlynotbedescribedas“wise”andshouldperhaps

thereforebeignoredbylegislators.

Ofcourse,ignoringpublicopinion,evenuninformedpublicopinion,mayplacelegislatorsat

riskcomeelection‐time.Evenwhenthepublicdoesnotunderstandapieceoflegislation,members

oftheelectoratemaynonethelessholdstrongopinionsaboutit,eitherfavorableorunfavorable,

andthoseopinionsmayshapetheirvotingdowntheroad.Indeed,agreatdealofresearchsuggests

thatpublicopiniononpolicyissuesdoessometimesshapevotechoices(seeAnand&Krosnick,

2003;Krosnick,1988).Soalegislatorwhovotesagainstapieceoflegislationthatvotersfavormay9QuestionsaskingwhetherthebillshouldberepealedhavesometimesshownamajorityofAmericansansweringaffirmatively.



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findhimselforherselflaterpayinganelectoralpriceifthatvotebecomeswellpublicizedbythe

legislator’sopponentduringacampaign,evenifpublicunderstandingofthelegislationisseriously

wanting.

Inasituationsuchasthis,legislatorswhowishtoseeapieceoflegislationpassed(oravoid

itsrepeal)alwayshavetheoptionofinformingtheAmericanpublicaboutwhatthelegislationwouldtrulydo,inthehopethatbetterunderstandingwouldleadthepublictoofferastronger

signalofsupporttotheirelectedrepresentatives.Butwouldsucheducationindeedleadtomore

support?Thispresumablydependsonthenatureofthepublic’smisunderstandingsandonthe

public’sevaluationsoftheelementstheybelievecomposethelegislationandoftheelementsthatin

factcomposeit.

Inthispaper,wereportaninvestigationofexactlytheseissueswithregardtotheACA.

Usingdatafromtwosurveys(oneconductedin2010andtheotherin2012),weexplored:

1) HowaccuratelyAmericanshaveunderstoodwhatisintheACAandwhatisnot.

2)

Howtheaccuracyofpeople’sunderstandinghaschangedduringthetwoyearssincethebillwaspassed.

3) HowknowledgeaccuracyisrelatedtofavoringtheACA–thatis,whetherpeoplewho

knowmoreaboutwhat’sintheACAlikeitmoreorlikeitless,

4) HowthepublicwouldfeelabouttheACAifeveryoneunderstoodthataseriesofits

centralelementsareindeedincludedintheACAandthataseriesoffrequently

discussedbutultimatelyomittedelementsarenotinit.

Alongtheway,weinvestigatedtwootherissues:

1) Thepredictorsofaccurateunderstandingoftheplan‐thatis,whichtypesofpeopleare

moreandlesslikelytoscorewellonaquiz.2) Thepopularityofvariousspecificelementsthatwereincludedintheplan,andhow

popularareelementsthatwerenotincludedbutweresometimesclaimedtobe.

Incarryingoutthisinvestigation,weimplementedanewapproachtomeasuringpublic

understandingofapublicpolicyissue.Insurveysdoneduringthelast80years,ithasbeenroutine

totestknowledgebyaskingpeoplefactualquestionsandgradingpeopleaseithercorrector

incorrectbaseduponwhethertheiranswermatchedthefactsornot.Butthisapproachignoresa

simpleandunavoidablefact:thatarespondentsayingtoasurveyinterviewerthatmembersofthe

RepublicanPartyoutnumbermembersoftheDemocraticPartyintheU.S.HouseofRepresentatives

doesnotnecessarilymeanthattherespondentbelievesthistobetrue.Whenaskedwhichparty

holdsmoreseats,arespondentmightsimplyguessandendupgivingthecorrectanswerbychancealone.Thisresponsewouldnotrevealabeliefthattherespondentgenuinelyholds,norwouldthat

purportedbeliefhaveanyimpactonhisorherthinking,becauseheorshedoesnottrulyholdthat

perceptionoftheworld.Guessingseemslikelytoespeciallydistortanswerstoquizquestionsthat

offeronlytworesponsechoices,asweusedhere(isthisincludedintheACAornotincludedinthe

ACA?).





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eitheracomputerorInternetaccesswereprovidedthem.Uponjoiningthepanel,panelistsfirst

completedacoreprofilequestionnairethatcapturedinformationabouttheirrace,gender,age,

income,education,andmore.Foreachsubsequentsurvey,panelmemberswereselectedusinga

probabilityproportionaltosize(PPS)weightedsamplingdesign,producingasamplethatis

representativeoftheAmericanpopulation.

ThefirstsurveyforthisprojectwasconductedbetweenAugust31andSeptember7,2010.

Arandomsampleof1,815adultswasinvitedtoparticipate,and1,271completedthesurvey

(completionrate=70%).Themediantimespentcompletingthequestionnairewas26minutes.

ThesecondsurveywasconductedbetweenAugust3and13,2012.GfKinvited2,344

Americanadultstoparticipate,and1,334completedthequestionnaire,acompletionrateof57%.

Themediantimespentcompletingthequestionnaire(whichwasmuchshorterthanthe

questionnaireusedin2010)was17minutes.

Allanalysesreportedbelowwereconductedusingweightstoadjustforunequalprobability

ofselectionandpost‐stratifyingbasedondemographics.

Table1displaysvariouspercentagesneededforthecalculationofresponseratesforthe

surveyanddisplaysvariousthebreakdownfortheresponseratesforbothsurveys.

Table1:ResponseRates

Rate 2010 2012 A. PanelRecruitment

ResponseRate(AAPORResponse

Rate3)

17.2% 17.2%

B. HouseholdProfileRate

61.5% 61.5%

C. HouseholdRetention

Rate35.0% 35.0%

D. SurveyCompletion

Rate70.0% 57.3%

E. ActiveRate 99.2% 99.2%ORR1(A*B*C*D*E) 2.6% 2.1%ORR2(A*B*D) 7.4% 6.1%ORR3(A*D) 12.0% 9.9%

AppendixBdisplaysthedemographicprofilesofbothsamples.



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Measures

KnowledgeandCertainty

Respondentswereasked18knowledgequizquestions,probingwhetherspecificprovisionswerein

thehealthcarebill.Respondentsreadonedescriptionatatimeandindicatedwhetherthey

thoughttheprovisionwas“inthebill”or“notinthebill”thatCongresspassedin2010.

TwelveoftheelementswereprincipalprovisionsoftheACA.Theremainingsixelements

werenotinthebillbuthadbeenfrequentlydiscussedinpublicdebate;theseelementswere

identifiedbyexpertsattheAssociatedPressandresearchersatStanfordUniversity.AppendixA

showstheinstructionsforrespondents,thefulllistofquestions,andthecorrectanswerforeach

item.

Followingeachquizquestion,respondentswereasked,“Howsureareyouaboutthis?”The

answers“extremelysure”and“verysure”werecoded1(certain),andtheanswers“moderately

sure”,“slightlysure”,and“notsureatall”werecoded0(uncertain).

Tomeasureeachrespondent’slevelofknowledge,wefirstcomputedthepercentofthe12

provisionsoftheACAthattherespondentscorrectlyidentifiedassuchwithhighconfidence.Next,

wecomputedthepercentofthe6provisionsnotintheACAthattherespondentcorrectlyidentified

assuchwithhighconfidence.Then,weaveragesthesetwopercentagestoyieldafinalknowledge

scoreforeachrespondent.Consequently,thefactthattwiceasmanyquestionstappedknowledge

aboutprovisionsinthebillastappedprovisionsnotinthebilldidnotcausethefinalindexscoreto

bebasedmoreonunderstandingoftheelementsinthebillthanonunderstandingoftheelements

notinthebill.Thefinalknowledgescorerangedfrom0%forpeoplewhodidnotidentifyany

provisioncorrectlywithhighconfidence,to100%forpeoplewhoproperlyidentifiedallprovisions

withhighconfidence.

Evaluationof the ACA

Inthe2012survey,respondentswereasked,“Ingeneraldoyoufavor,oppose,orneitherfavornor

opposethelawchangingthehealthcaresystemthattheU.S.CongresspassedinMarch2010?”The

responses“favorstrongly”and“favorsomewhat”werecoded1(indicatingfavoring),andthe

responses“neitherfavornoroppose”,“opposesomewhat”,and“opposestrongly”werecodedas0

(notfavoring).

Support for ACAPlanElements

Respondentswerealsoaskedtoindicatewhethertheyfavoredoropposedeachofthe18

provisionsaddressedbythequizquestions.Oneachscreen,respondentswereasked“Doyoufavor

opposethischange?”alongwithastatementdescribingtheprovision.Responseswerecodedinthe

samefashionasforthegeneralfavorabilityquestion,“favor”versus“notfavor”.

PartisanshipTwodummyvariableswerecreatedtodistinguishRepublicansandDemocratsfrompeoplewithout

apartyaffiliation.RespondentswerecodedtobeaDemocratoraRepublicaniftheyanswered

“Democrat”or“Republican”tothequestion“DoyouconsideryourselfaDemocrat,aRepublican,an



7

independent,ornoneofthese?”Allotherrespondentsweretreatedasindependents.Twenty‐seven

respondentsrefusedtoanswerthisquestionandweretreatedasmissinginanalysesusingthis

variable.

MediaUseRespondentswereasked,“Howoftendoyougetnewsfromeachofthefollowing?”andpresentedwithalistof“LocalTVNews,”“FoxNewscablechannel,”“MSNBCcablenews,”“CNNcablenews,”

“NationaleveningnetworktelevisionnewsonCBS,ABC,orNBC”,“Radionews”,and“newsfromthe

internet.”Responsestothesequestionswerecoded1iftherespondentsanswered“extremely

often”or“veryoften”.Theresponses“moderatelyoften”,“rarely”,and“never”werecoded0.

Demographic InformationAgewascodedtorangefrom0to1.DummyvariablesdistinguishedbetweenWhite,Black,Hispanic

respondentsandthosewhoindicatedtheybelongedtoanotherethnicgroup.Variablesindicating

educationseparatedpeoplewithahigh‐schooldegreeorlessfrompeoplewhoindicatedhaving

attendedsomecollegeeducationbutnodegreeandpeoplewhograduatedfromcollege.Finally,

twodummyvariablesdistinguishedthreeequallylargegroupsofpeoplewhoindicatedhavinglowincome(lessthan$39,999),moderateincome(between$40,000and$84,999),orhighincome

(morethan$85,000).

Results

Favoringvs.Opposingthe ACAin2012

In2012,32%ofrespondentssaidtheyfavoredtheACA,36%saidtheyopposedit,and32%said

theyneitherfavorednoropposedit.Thefactthatnegativeresponsesslightlyoutnumbered

positiveresponsesresemblesresultsproducedbyvariousotherpollingorganizationsinrecent

months.

Notsurprisingly,evaluationsofthebillvariedaccordingtopoliticalpartyidentification.

AmongDemocrats,51%favorthebill;29%ofindependentsexpressedthesameopinion,and8%of

Republicansdidso.Thepartisangapof43percentagepointsisnotatypicalinAmerican

evaluationsofpiecesoflegislationthesedays.

Knowledgeabout the ACAin2012

In2012,whenimplementingthemethodusedinmostpaststudiesofgivingcredittorespondents

whogavecorrectanswersregardlessofcertainty,frequencyofcorrectanswerswasstrikinglyhigh

forsomeelementsoftheplan(seecolumn2ofTable2).Forexample,80%saidthatchildrencouldbecoveredbytheirparents’policy.And80%saidthatcompanieswithmorethan50employees

wererequiredtoprovidehealthinsurancetotheiremployees.Majorities,andoftenlarge

majorities,gavecorrectanswersregardingmostoftheprovisionsinthebill.Foronlytwoofthe

twelveprovisionsweaskedabout(newfeestobechargedtohealthinsurancecompaniesand

pharmaceuticalcompanies)didmajoritiesgivetheincorrectanswer(only44%and37%gave

correctanswers,respectively).



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However,thesenumbersshouldbetakenwithagrainofsalt,foratleasttworeasons.First,

becausethesequestionsofferedjusttwoanswerchoices(inthebillvs.notinthebill),random

guessingwouldbeexpectedtoyield50%ofanswerscorrectbychancealone.Andsecond,manyof

thecorrectanswerspeoplegavemayhavebeengivenwithlittleornocertainty,soitmightbe

inappropriatetosaythatthesepeoplepossessedthesebeliefs.

Whentakingintoaccountpeople’scertaintyratings,weobservedmuchlowerlevelsofaccurate

knowledge(seecolumn1ofTable2).Indeed,onlyoneprovisionwascorrectlyidentifiedwithhigh

certaintyasbeingpartoftheACAbyamajorityofrespondents.52%ofrespondentscorrectlysaid

withhighcertaintythatchildrenundertheageof26couldgethealthinsurancebybeingincluded

ontheirparents’healthinsurancepolicies.Allotherprovisionsofthelawwerecorrectlyidentified

withhighcertaintybylessthan40%ofAmericans.Only11%correctlybelievedwithhighcertainty

thatdrugcompanieswouldpaynewfeesunderthelaw,andonly10%correctlybelievedwithhigh

certaintythatinsurancecompanieswouldpaysuchnewfees.

Table 2: Accuracy of Knowledge About Provisions That Were in the ACA– 2012 Data

Policy

% Thinking policy is

in law with high

certainty


in law regardless of

certainty

Children under 26 can be included in parents’

insurance 52.2% 80.1%

Large companies have to provide health insurance to

employees 38.7% 80.1%

U.S. citizens without health insurance have to pay

fine if they don’t have specific reasons 36.3% 69.4%

Insurance

companies

have

to

sell

health

insurance

to

people with preexisting conditions 32.6% 72.2%

Insurance companies have to continue insurance as

long as no rules are broken 28.8% 77.1%

Make insurance for sale for any American 28.7% 69.2%

Prevent limiting amount paid for person’s health care

costs 23.5% 60.5%

Discounts on prescriptions to seniors with high drug

costs 20.0% 68.4%

Federal tax credits for small companies that buy

insurance for their employees 17.5% 66.8%

Subsidize health insurance for U.S. citizens with low

income

16.8%

51.4%

New fees for health insurance companies 11.1% 44.3%

New fees for companies that make drugs 10.2% 37.0%

Asimilarportraitemergedwithregardtothe6provisionsweaskedaboutthatwerenotactuallyin

theACA.Majoritiesgavecorrectanswerstothequizquestionsforallbutoneoftheseprovisions



9

(seecolumn2ofTable3).Butsomeofthesewereonlyslightmajorities.Forexample,54.3%said

thatso‐called“deathpanels”arenotpartofthelaw.Thisisonlyveryslightlymorethanwouldbe

expectedbychancealone.Andwhencertaintywastakenintoaccount,minorities(andsometimes

verysmallminorities)believedwithhighconfidencethattheywerenotincludedinthelaw(see

column1ofTable3).Forexample,only25.6%wascertainthatjobapplicantswouldnothaveto

disclosepreviousillnessestonewemployers.And“deathpanels”weresaidwithcertaintytonotbepartofthelawbyonly17%oftherespondents.

Table 3: Accuracy of Knowledge About Provisions That Were Not in the ACA– 2012 Data

Policy


NOT in law with high

certainty


NOT in law regardless

of certainty

Job applicants have to disclose previous

illnesses to employer 25.6% 75.3%

Restaurants with unhealthy food must pay fee

to government 23.2% 73.1%

Committees decide whether people get medical

care (“death panels”) 16.8% 54.3%

Smokers have to pay additional $1,000 a year 14.1% 64.0%

Health care ID card needed to get treatment at

hospital 13.3% 56.5%

Require treatment of illegal immigrants for free 10.5% 41.7%

Lookedatfromanothervantagepoint:78%ofrespondentsansweredmorethanhalfofthe18quiz

questionscorrectly(seecolumn4ofTable4),butonly44%answered13ormoreofthe18

questionscorrectly.Andthesefigureswerestrikinglylowerwhentreatingascorrectonlyanswers

providedwithhighcertainty(seecolumn2ofTable4):14%and3%,respectively.Notasingle

respondentansweredeveryquizquestioncorrectlywithhighcertainty.

Table 4: Number of Correctly Answered Quiz Questions With and Without

Taking Certainty into Account (N = 1344) – 2012 Data

Requiring High

Certainty

Regardless of

Certainty

Number of correctly

answered questions

Percent

Cumulative

percent

Percent

Cumulative

percent

All 18 0.0% 0.0% 0.3% 0.3%

17 out of 18 0.0% 0.0% 1.5% 1.8%

16 out of 18 0.1% 0.1% 6.0% 7.8%

15 out of 18 0.8% 1.0% 10.9% 18.8%

14 out of 18 1.3% 2.3% 12.5% 31.3%

13 out of 18 1.1% 3.4% 12.9% 44.1%



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12 out of 18 3.2% 6.6% 14.4% 58.5%

11 out of 18 2.7% 9.3% 11.9% 70.4%

10 out of 18 4.2% 13.5% 7.7% 78.1%

9 out of 18 5.4% 18.9% 6.1% 84.2%

8 out of 18 5.6% 24.5% 5.6% 89.7%

7 out

of

18

5.9%

30.4%

3.0%

92.7%

6 out of 18 6.7% 37.1% 2.8% 95.5%

5 out of 18 5.9% 42.9% 0.9% 96.4%

4 out of 18 7.2% 50.1% 0.6% 97.0%

3 out of 18 8.8% 58.9% 0.3% 97.3%

2 out of 18 8.6% 67.5% 0.1% 97.5%

1 out of 18 10.4% 77.9% 0.3% 97.8%

0 out of 18 22.1% 100.0% 2.2% 100.0%

Total 100.0% 100.0% 0.3% 0.3%

PredictingLevelsof Knowledgeabout the ACA

Asshownbytheestimatesofparametersofordinaryleastsquares(OLS)regressionspredictingthe

knowledgescore(computedasdescribedinthemethodsectionabove),levelsofknowledgevaried

systematicallywithsomecharacteristicsofrespondents.Whenusingdemographicsandparty

identificationaspredictors(seecolumn1ofTable5),wefound:

‐ Democratsweresignificantlymoreaccuratethanwereindependents.

‐ IndependentweresignificantlymoreaccuratethanRepublicans.

‐ Accuracyincreasedasrespondentageincreased.

‐ Accuracyincreasedasrespondenteducationincreased,perhapsatleastpartlythe

resultofthefactthatmoreeducatedpeoplegenerallypaymoreattentiontoinformation

aboutpoliticsinthenews.

‐ Sex,race,andincomewerenotsignificantlyrelatedtoknowledgeaccuracy.10

Whenweaddednewssourcesaspredictorsintheregressionequation,weobserveda

seriesofstrikingfindings:

‐ Frequentexposuretowhatmightbecalled“mainstream”newssources(CNN,CBS,ABC,

NBC,andlocaltelevisionnewsprograms)appearstohavehadnosignificanteffecton

theextentofaccurateknowledgepossessedbyrespondents.Thatis,thesenews

organizationsmaynothaveconferredenhancedunderstandingontheirviewers.

10Representingincomeinfivegroupsinsteadofthreedidnotchangetheseresults.



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‐ FrequentexposuretoMSNBCmayhaveenhancedaccurateknowledgemorethandid

frequentexposuretoanyothernewssourceweexamined.

FrequentexposuretoFoxNewsmayalsohavehadapositiveeffectonunderstanding

thebill.

‐ Frequentexposuretoradionewsandinternetnewsalsoappeartohavesignificantlyenhancedunderstandingofthebill.

Table 5: OLS Regression Predicting Percent Correct Answers to

Knowledge Quiz Questions with High Certainty – 2012 Data

Predictor Analysis 1 Analysis 2

Democrat 3.90* 3.00

Republican ‐4.69** ‐5.77***

Age 9.18** 5.70

Female ‐1.86 ‐1.85

Black ‐.93 ‐1.11

Hispanic ‐.37 ‐0.41

Other Race 3.22 3.75

Some college education 4.10* 3.59*

College graduate 8.59*** 7.04***

High income 2.11 1.95

Middle income ‐.47 ‐1.05

Fox News exposure ‐ 3.81*

MSNBC exposure ‐ 8.05**

CNN exposure ‐‐1.30

Exposure to

news

on

CBS, ABC, or NBC

‐

1.07

Exposure to local TV

news

‐

1.01

Radio news exposure ‐ 4.40*

Internet news exposure ‐ 3.77*

Intercept 14.94*** 13.42***

N 1316 1222

*** p < 0.001, ** p< 0.01, * p< 0.05

TheRelation

of

Knowledge

to

Favoring

the

ACA

Asrevealedbyestimatesoftheparametersofalogisticregressionequationpredictingopinions

abouttheACAusingknowledgescores,moreknowledgewasassociatedwithahigherprobability

offavoringthebill(seeTable6).Putdifferently,themoreaccurateaperson’sbeliefswereabout

the18elementsthatweaskedabout,themoreheorshelikedtheACA.



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AccordingtothecoefficientsinTable6,anindependentwithperfectknowledgeoftheplan

elementsweexaminedhada15.7timeshigherchanceoffavoringthebillthandidsomeonewho

didnotanswerasinglequizquestioncorrectly(log‐odds=.03,odds‐ratiofor100%knowledge

versusnoknowledge=15.73).Whenusingtheparameterestimatesfromanequationexcluding

partyaffiliationasapredictor,ahypotheticalpersonwithperfectknowledgeoftheplanelements

weexaminedhadaalmost21timeshigherchanceoffavoringthebillthandidsomeonewhodidnotanswerasinglequizquestioncorrectly.

Whencontrollingforknowledgelevelandallotherbackgroundvariables,partyidentificationwas

stillsignificantlyrelatedtofavoringtheACA.Democratslikeditmorethanindependents,and

independentslikeditsignificantlymorethanRepublicans.ThechancesthataDemocratwould

favorthebillwasabout2.5timeshigherthanthechanceforanindependent(log‐odds=.94,odds‐

ratio=2.56).AndaRepublican’schancesoffavoringthebillwasonly0.26timesthechancethatan

independentwoulddoso(log‐odds=‐1.36,odds‐ratio=0.26).Thus,althoughthesethreegroups

differedintermsoftheirknowledgelevels,thegapbetweentheminapprovalremainedevenwhen

statisticallyequatingthesegroupsintermsoftheirknowledgelevels.

CollegegraduatesandpeoplewhowerefrequentlyexposedtonewsonCNNhadahigherlikelihood

offavoringtheACAthanothers.Incontrast,peoplewhofrequentlywatchedFoxNewswere

significantlylesslikelytofavorthebillthanothers.Allotherdemographicvariableswerenot

relatedtotheprobabilityoffavoringtheACA.

Table 6: Logistic Regression Predicting Favoring

the ACA – 2012 Data

Predictor Analysis 1

Percent correct answers .03***

Democrat .94***

Republican ‐1.36***

Age .08

Female ‐.23

Black .21

Hispanic .01

Other Race .36

Some college education ‐.08

College graduate .55*

High income .27

Middle income .01

Fox News

exposure

‐1.31***

MSNBC exposure .40

CNN exposure .72**

Exposure to news on

CBS, ABC, or NBC .15

Exposure to local TV

news .11



13

Radio news exposure ‐.10

Internet news exposure .28

Intercept ‐1.95***

N 1316

*** p < 0.001, ** p< 0.01, * p< 0.05

ProjectingFavorabilitywithPerfect KnowledgeHowwouldthenationhavefeltabouttheACAifeveryonehadunderstoodalltheprovisionswe

askedaboutcorrectlyandwithconfidence?

Weansweredthisquestionintwoways.First,wecalculatedthedegreeoffavorabilityamong

hypotheticalpeopletoillustratehowknowledgeaffectedsupportersofthetwopartiesand

independentsdifferently.Figure1showshowtheprobabilityoffavoringthebillchangedbasedon

theresultsinTable6forahypotheticalwhitefemale,45yearsold,withhighschooleducationorless,ahighincome,andwhodidnotreceiveinformationoftenfromanyofthenewssources.

ThisfigureillustratesthatifthishypotheticalpersonwereaRepublicanwhoanswerednoneofour

knowledgequizquestionscorrectlywithconfidence,shewouldhaveonlya4%probabilityof

favoringthebill.Andisshehadansweredallofourquestionswithhighconfidence,shewould

havehada37%chanceoffavoringtheACA.

IfthepersonwereaDemocratorconsideredherselftobeanindependent,boththeincreaseinthe

probabilityoffavoringthebillwithincreasingknowledgewouldbegreater.Ahypothetical

independentwhogavenocorrectanswerswithhighcertaintywouldhavehada13%chanceof

favoringthebill,andthisnumberwouldincreaseto70%ifsheansweredallquestionsaccuratelywithhighconfidence.ForahypotheticalDemocratwhoansweredallquestionsaccuratelywithhigh

confidence,theprobabilityoffavoringthebillwas86%.

Toapproachthisissueinasecondway,wecalculatedforeveryrespondenttheprobabilitythathe

orshewouldfavortheplanifheorshehadansweredallquestionsaccuratelywithhighconfidence.

Thismethodyieldedthepredictionthat70%ofpeoplewouldfavorthebilliftheyallansweredthe

questionsaccuratelywithhighknowledge.Thiscontrastsdramaticallywiththefactthat32%of

respondentsinthesurveysaidthattheyfavoredthebill,basedontheircurrent,farfromperfect

levelsofcurrentactualunderstandingoftheprovisionsweaskedabout.Thus,thisanalysis

suggeststhatincreasedunderstandingmighthavetransformedthe32%favoringinto70%favoring.

Thismethodsuggestedthatabout88%ofDemocratswouldfavorthebill,74%ofindependents

woulddoso,and40%ofRepublicanswoulddoso.



14

Figure1:TheRelationof KnowledgetoFavoringthe ACA:Dems,Inds,andRepsSeparately

FavoringtheElementsof the ACA

TheresultsofthissimulationsuggestthateliminatingmisunderstandingsabouttheACAmightlead

tomorefavorableevaluationsofit.Inorderforthistobetrue,itwouldbenecessarythatpeople

generallylikedtheprovisionsthatwereactuallyincludedintheACAbutthattheyoftendidnot

believewithconfidencewere.Then,learningoftheirinclusionwouldincreaseoverallfavorability.

Andlikewise,itmayalsobethecasethatpeoplegenerallydislikedtheprovisionsthatthey

sometimesthoughtincorrectlywereinthebill,solearningthattheywerenotinthebillwouldalso

increaseoverallfavorability.

Infact,directquestionsassessingevaluationsofthespecificplanelementsconformedtothose

guesses.AsshowninTable7,majoritiesofrespondents,andsometimeshugemajorities,favored

theelementsthatwereactuallyincludedintheplan.Onlythreeplanelementswerenotfavoredby

amajorityofAmericans:chargingafeetocitizenswhodonothavehealthinsurance,andcharging

newfeestohealthinsurancecompaniesandpharmaceuticalmanufacturers–werenotfavoredbya

majorityofAmericans

0 20 40 60 80 100

0

2 0

4 0

6 0

8 0

1 0

0

Predicted percentage favoring the bill by knowledge

Percentage correct answers with high certainty

P r e d i c t e d

p e r c e n t a g e

i n

f a v o r

DemocratIndependentRepublican



15

Table 7: Percent Favoring the Elements of the ACA ‐ 2012 Data

Element

Percent Favoring the

Element

Insurance

companies

have

to

continue

insurance

as

long

as

no rules are broken 81.8%

Discounts on prescriptions to seniors with high drug costs 79.2%

Make insurance for sale for any American 77.9%

Federal tax credits for small companies that buy insurance

for their employees 71.2%

Children under 26 can be included in parents’ insurance 70.4%

Prevent limiting amount paid for person’s health care costs 63.9%

Insurance companies have to sell health insurance to

people with preexisting conditions 62.0%

Large companies have to provide health insurance to

employees

55.3%

Subsidize health insurance for U.S. citizens with low income 47.3%

New fees for companies that make drugs 31.1%

U.S. citizens without health insurance have to pay fine if

they don’t have specific reasons 27.5%

New fees for health insurance companies 24.3%

Evenmorestrikingly,theprovisionsthatwerenotintheACAwerefavoredbyminorities,andoften

smallminorities,ofAmericans(seeTable8).Aminorityof35%favoredtheideathatsmokers

shouldhavetopayanadditional$1,000peryearfortheirinsurance.Notsurprisingly,“death

panels”werefavoredbyfewerthan20%.Thus,thesefiguressuggestthatcorrectingmisunderstandingsabouttheseelementsmightleadtoincreasedpublicfavorabilityabouttheACA.

Table 8: Percent Favoring of Elements That Were NOT in the ACA – 2012 Data

Element

Percent Favoring the

Element

Smokers have to pay additional $1,000 a year 35.1%

Health care ID card needed to get treatment at hospital 27.1%

Restaurants with unhealthy food must pay fee to

government 26.1%

Require treatment of illegal immigrants for free 20.8%

Committees decide

whether

people

get

medical

care

(“death panels”) 19.1%

Job applicants have to disclose previous illnesses to

employer 15.5%



16

ChangeinKnowledge Accuracybetween2010and2012

DuringthetwoyearssincetheACAwaspassedbyCongress,publicunderstandingofthelawhas

increasedslightlyforsomeplanelementsandhasnotchangedformost.Wewereabletoassess

thisbycomparingtheresultsofour2012knowledgequizwiththeresultsobtainedby

administeringanidenticalquizinour2010survey.

Withregardtothe12elementsthatareincludedintheACA,thepercentofpeoplewho

correctlyrecognizedthatfactwithhighconfidenceincreasedsignificantlyfor5ofthe12elements

(seethelastcolumnofTable9).Thisincreasewasmostsizablefortheplanelementsrequiring

thatcitizenswithoutinsurancepayafine(13.9%increase),allowingchildrenunder26tobe

includedonparentsinsuranceplan(9.5%increase),andrequiringlargecompaniestoprovide

healthinsurancetotheiremployees(8.4%increase).

Correctunderstandingdecreasedsignificantlyforoneplanelement,thoughslightly.

Specifically,fewerpeopleareawareofthefactthatsmallcompaniesthatbuyhealthinsurancefor

theiremployeescangetfederaltaxcredits(decreaseof‐3.4%).Correctunderstandingheldsteady

fortheremaining6elements.

Theratesofaccuracywithregardtoelementsnotintheplanshowedevenless

improvement(seethelastcolumnofTable10).Onlyonesuchelementmanifestedasignificant

increaseinaccuracyfrom2010to2012.Therestshowednochange.Thus,withthepassageof

time,mythsabouttheseelementshavenotbeennotablydiscreditedinthepublic’smind.

Table 9: Change in Accuracy for Policies that are in the ACA Bill between 2010 and 2012

Element

% Thinking the Policy Was

in the

ACA

with

High

Certainty Change

from

2010 to 2012

2010 2012

Children under 26 can be included in parents’

insurance 42.6% 52.2% +9.5%***

Large companies have to provide health insurance

to employees 30.3% 38.7% +8.4%***

U.S. citizens without health insurance have to pay

fine if they don’t have specific reasons 22.4% 36.3% +13.9%***

Insurance companies have to sell health insurance

to people with preexisting conditions 24.8% 32.6% +7.8%***

Insurance companies

have

to

continue

insurance

as

long as no rules are broken 27.0% 28.8% +1.8%

Make insurance for sale for any American 26.7% 28.7% +2.0%

Prevent limiting amount paid for person’s health

care costs 19.5% 23.5% +3.9%*

Discounts on prescriptions to seniors with high drug

costs 21.7% 20.0% ‐1.7%



17

Federal tax credits for small companies that buy

insurance for their employees 20.8% 17.5% ‐3.4%*

Subsidize health insurance for U.S. citizens with low

income 19.7% 16.8% ‐2.9%

New fees for health insurance companies 11.1% 11.1% +0.0%

New fees

for

companies

that

make

drugs

10.0%

10.2%

+0.2%

*** p < 0.001, ** p< 0.01, * p< 0.05

Table 10: Change in Accuracy for Policies that are NOT in the ACA Bill between 2010 and 2012

Element

% Thinking the Policy Was

NOT in the ACA with High

Certainty

Change

from 2010

to 2012

2010 2012

Job applicants have to disclose previous illnesses to

employer 26.9% 25.6% ‐1.2%

Restaurants with

unhealthy

food

must

pay

fee

to

government 19.6% 23.2% +3.6%*

Committees decide whether people get medical care

(“death panels”) 17.2% 16.8% ‐0.4%

Smokers have to pay additional $1,000 a year 13.9% 14.1% +0.2%

Health care ID card needed to get treatment at

hospital 14.5% 13.3% ‐1.2%

Require treatment of illegal immigrants for free 12.3% 10.5% ‐1.8%

*** p < 0.001, ** p< 0.01, * p< 0.05

Inlinewiththepreviouslydescribedfindings,peoplegavemorecorrectanswerswithhighcertaintyin2012thanin2010.Table11showsthatonly14.9%ofAmericansanswered9quiz

questionscorrectlywithhighconfidencein2010,whereas18.9%didsoin2012.Themedian

numberofcorrectanswersofferedwithhighconfidenceincreasedfrom3to4between2010and

2012,astatisticallysignificantincreasethatwasaccompaniedbyanon‐significantincreaseinthe

percentofpeoplefavoringthehealthcarebill,from29.9%in2010to33.6%in2012



18

Table 11: Number of Correctly Answered Quiz Questions with High Certainty in

2010 and 2012

2010 2012

Number of

correctly answered

questions

Percent

Cumulative

percent

Percent

Cumulative

percent All 18 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%

17 out of 18 0.2% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0%

16 out of 18 0.1% 0.2% 0.1% 0.1%

15 out of 18 0.6% 0.9% 0.8% 1.0%

14 out of 18 0.6% 1.5% 1.3% 2.3%

13 out of 18 1.8% 3.4% 1.1% 3.4%

12 out of 18 2.5% 5.8% 3.2% 6.6%

11 out of 18 2.6% 8.5% 2.7% 9.3%

10 out of 18 2.9% 11.4% 4.2% 13.5%

9 out of 18

3.5%

14.9%

5.4%

18.9%

8 out of 18 5.2% 20.1% 5.6% 24.5%

7 out of 18 5.4% 25.4% 5.9% 30.4%

6 out of 18 5.8% 31.3% 6.7% 37.1%

5 out of 18 7.2% 38.4% 5.9% 42.9%

4 out of 18 8.5% 46.9% 7.2% 50.1%

3 out of 18 8.6% 55.5% 8.8% 58.9%

2 out of 18 8.3% 63.8% 8.6% 67.5%

1 out of 18 12.2% 75.9% 10.4% 77.9%

0 out of 18 24.1% 100.0% 22.1% 100.0%

Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

N 1251 1344

ConclusionsTakentogether,thesefindingsreinforcetwomajorconclusions:

‐ AmericanunderstandingofwhatisandisnotintheACAhasbeenfarfromperfect.

‐ Correctunderstandingoftheelementsofthebillthatweaskedaboutvariedwithparty

identification:Democratsunderstoodthemost,independentsless,andRepublicansstillless.

‐ Olderpeopleandmoreeducatedpeoplehaveunderstoodtheelementsweaskedabout

betterthanhaveyoungerandlesseducatedpeople.

‐ Between2010and2012,publicunderstandingofthebilldidnotchangenotably.



19

‐ MostpeoplehavefavoredmostoftheelementsoftheACAthatweexamined,butnot

everyonerecognizedthattheseelementswereallintheplan.

‐ MostpeopleopposedtheelementsweaskedaboutthatwerenotintheACA,butsome

peoplethoughttheseelementswereintheplan.

‐ Ifthepublichadperfectunderstandingoftheelementsthatweexamined,the

proportionofAmericanswhofavorthebillmightincreasefromthecurrentlevelof32%

to70%.

Takentogether,allthissuggeststhatifeducationeffortsweretocorrectpublicmisunderstanding

ofthebill,publicevaluationsmightincreaseconsiderablyinfavorability.



20

ReferencesAnand,S.,&Krosnick,J.A.(2003).Theimpactofattitudestowardforeignpolicygoalsonpublic

preferencesamongpresidentialcandidates:Astudyofissuepublicsandtheattentivepublicinthe2000U.S.Presidentialelection.PresidentialStudiesQuarterly,33,31‐71.

Krosnick,J.A.(1988).Theroleofattitudeimportanceinsocialevaluation:Astudyofpolicy

preferences,presidentialcandidateevaluations,andvotingbehavior.JournalofPersonality

andSocialPsychology,55,196‐210.

Krosnick,J.A.(2002).Thecausesofno‐opinionresponsestoattitudemeasuresinsurveys:Theyarerarelywhattheyappeartobe.InR.M.Groves,D.A.Dillman,J.L.Eltinge,&R.J.A.Little(Eds.),Surveynonresponse.NewYork:Wiley.

Petty,R.E.,&Krosnick,J.A.(Eds.).(1995).Attitudestrength:Antecedentsandconsequences.

Hillsdale,NJ:Erlbaum.



21

Appendix A:QuestionWordingsof KnowledgeQuestions

Respondentswereshownthefollowingtextononescreen:

We’d liketo find out people’simpressionsabout thelaw that theU.S.Congress passed back inMarch 2010tochangetheU.S.healthcaresysteminmany ways.We’d liketo find out people’simpressionsabout what that law sayswill happen.Beforethelaw was passed by theCongress,therewasalot of talk inthenewsabout thingsthat the planmight or might not do.Next, youwill read alist of thesethings,oneat atime.Most thethings you’ll read weretalked about as possibly beinginthelaw.But only someof thethings you’ll read areactually inthelaw that theCongress passed inMarch 2010.We’d liketolearn your best guessesabout whichof thesethingsareinthelaw and whicharenot.Wewill alsoask youhow sure youarethat eachanswer you giveiscorrect.It’s fineif youaresureof ananswer or if youarenot sureof ananswer.We just want to find out your best guesses.Wewant toknow what peoplethink without askingsomeoneelse for theanswersand without lookinguptheanswersontheInternet or inany other way.So pleasedonot doany of thesethings.Please just giveus your best guesses.Onaseriesofscreens,respondentswereasked:

Do youthink that thenew law will or will not dothe followingafter thelaw is fully ineffect? [STATEMENT APPEAREDHERE]How sureare youabout that?

Theorderoftheitemswasrotatedacrossrespondents.Theitemsare:

RequirethatifaU.S.citizendoesNOThavehealthinsurance,thatpersonwillhavetopayafineonhisorherfederalincometaxesunlessheorsheisallowednottohavetheinsuranceforaseriesofspecificreasons,suchashavingaverylowincome.(INTHEPLAN)

Requirecompanieswith50ormoreemployeestoprovidehealthinsurancetotheiremployeesorpayafinetothefederalgovernmentiftheydonot.(INTHEPLAN)

GivemoneytopayforhealthinsurancetopeoplewhoareU.S.citizensandhaveverylowincomes.(INTHEPLAN)



22

Givefederaltaxcreditstosomeverysmallcompaniesiftheybuyhealthinsurancefortheiremployees.(INTHEPLAN)

Requirecompaniesthatmakedrugstopaynewfeestothefederalgovernmenteachyear.(INTHEPLAN)

Requirecompaniesthatsellhealthinsurancetopaynewfeestothefederalgovernmenteachyear.(INTHEPLAN)

Preventahealthinsurancecompanyfromlimitingtheamountofmoneythatitwillpayforaperson’shealthcarecostsduringhisorherlife.(INTHEPLAN)

RequirehealthinsurancecompaniestosellhealthinsurancetoU.S.citizensandlegalimmigrantswhodon’thavehealthinsuranceandhaveaseriousmedicalproblem.(INTHEPLAN)

Allowyoungadultstogethealthinsurancebybeingincludedintheirparents’healthinsurancepoliciesuntiltheyturn26.(INTHEPLAN)

Requireahealthinsurancecompanytocontinueaperson’shealthinsuranceaslongasheorshepaysforitandhasnotbrokenanyrulesofthehealthinsuranceplan.(INTHEPLAN)

MakehealthinsuranceavailableforsalesothatanyAmericancanbuyifheorshewantsto.(INTHEPLAN)

Providediscountsonprescriptionstoseniorswithhighdrugcosts.(INTHEPLAN)

Requirethatanyoneapplyingforajobmusttelltheemployerifheorshehaseverhadanyseriousdiseases.(NOTINTHEPLAN)

Requirethatfastfoodrestaurantsthatsellunhealthyfoodordrinkstopayafeetothefederalgovernment.(NOTINTHEPLAN)

Requireinsurancecompaniestochargeanadditionalfeeof$1,000yeartoanyonewhobuysinsurancefromthemandsmokescigarettes.(NOTINTHEPLAN)

Createcommitteesofpeoplewhowillreviewthemedicalhistoriesofsomepeopleanddecidewhethertheycangetmedicalcarepaidforbythefederalgovernment.(NOTINTHEPLAN)

RequireeveryAmericantoshowagovernmenthealthcareidentificationcardinordertogetmedicalcareatahospital.(NOTINTHEPLAN)

Requiresomedoctorsandhospitalstotreatillegalimmigrantsfreeofchargeiftheycannotaffordtopay.(NOTINTHEPLAN)



23

AppendixB:SampleDemographics

2010Sample

Table B.1:

2010

Sample

Demographic

Characteristics

Unweighted(%)

Target (%)

Weighted(%)

Target–Weighted

Age18‐29

30‐44

45‐59

60+

13.228.331.227.3

22.026.127.824.1

21.226.528.226.1

0.8‐0.4‐0.4‐2.0

GenderMaleFemale

50.749.3

48.351.7

48.351.7

0.00.0

Education

Lessthan

high

school

HighschoolSomecollegeBachelorsdegreeorhigher

7.224.430.138.3

13.031.328.027.7

12.031.728.328.0

1.0‐0.4‐0.3‐0.3

Race/EthnicityWhite,Non‐HispanicBlack,Non‐HispanicOther,Non‐HispanicHispanic2+Races,Non‐Hispanic

78.17.83.38.42.5

67.911.55.5

14.01.1

68.511.65.5

13.21.2

‐0.6‐0.10.00.8‐0.1

RegionNortheast Midwest SouthWest

18.022.813.228.3

18.421.822.026.1

18.122.021.226.5

0.3‐0.20.8‐0.4

Note:TargetdataaretakenfromtheJuly, 2010, CurrentPopulationSurvey.



24

2012SampleTableB.2:2012 Sample Demographic Characteristics

Unweighted(%)

Target (%)

Weighted(%)

Target–Weighted

Age

18‐29

30‐44

45‐59

60+

15.921.628.933.6

21.725.627.425.4

21.325.727.625.4

0.4‐0.2‐0.20.0

GenderMaleFemale

48.951.1

48.251.8

48.251.8

0.00.0

Education

LessthanhighschoolHighschoolSomecollegeBachelorsdegreeorhigher

7.729.529.233.6

12.330.928.728.2

12.230.828.828.3

0.10.1‐0.1‐0.1

Race/Ethnicity

White,Non‐HispanicBlack,Non‐HispanicOther,Non‐HispanicHispanic2+Races,Non‐Hispanic

73.28.85.09.43.6

66.211.56.1

14.91.3

66.711.56.1

14.41.3

‐0.50.00.00.50.0

Region

Northeast Midwest South

West

19.022.735.023.3

18.321.537.023.2

18.321.537.023.1

‐0.10.00.00.1

IncomeUnder$25,000

$25,000‐$49,999

$50,000‐$74,999

$75,000andabove

15.824.119.141.0

19.323.218.938.6

19.323.219.038.5

0.00.0‐0.10.1

Note:TargetdataaretakenfromtheJuly, 2012,CurrentPopulationSurvey (age,gender,education,race/ethnicity,andregion)andtheMarch,2011,CurrentPopulationSurveySupplement(income).

Documents

Health Care 2012 - Knowledge and Favorability