Nearly 8-in-10 American voters support work requirements for Medicaid and other safety net programs. Nearly 7-in-10 agree that choosing not to work while receiving the benefits is committing fraud. Other potential reforms to Medicaid earn majority support.
WHY IT MATTERS
Congress is debating including work requirements and other reforms to Medicaid as part of a tax and spending bill. With 1-in-5 Americans on Medicaid, it is vital that reforms be chosen carefully and explained properly to maintain the support of the American people.
HOW TO USE THIS DATA
Advocates should use these results to guide their messaging around Medicaid reform. Specifically, they should be careful to frame the reforms as moral issues about fairness and ensuring adequate resources for the poor and disabled. They should avoid framing Medicaid reforms around cutting spending.
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Most Don’t Say Medicaid Is Welfare
- 49% of Americans consider Medicaid a “welfare program” compared to 77% and 67% who consider food and housing assistance to be welfare, respectively. This shows that Medicaid is thought of a different way than other safety-net benefits.
- There is little difference in this perception between parties or among those on Medicaid compared to all voters.
- Interestingly, just 25% consider unemployment checks to be welfare.
Strong Support for Work Requirements in Medicaid
- Despite this division over whether Medicaid is welfare or not, a strong majority of Americans support work requirements in the program.
- 78% of American voters support work requirements for safety net programs, including Medicaid. This includes 89% of Republicans, 75% of independents, and 70% of Democrats. It also includes 66% of Americans on Medicaid and 70% of Americans who have received welfare benefits the past year.
- Strong majorities of target voter groups support work requirements in Medicaid, including 77% of “Trump Persuadable” voters (those who approve of Trump policies but did not choose the GOP candidate on the generic ballot question) and 79% of New Majority voters who said they were undecided or leaning on the generic ballot.
- Support for work requirements is driven by a sense of fairness. 68% of American voters agree that individuals who can work but choose not to while receiving taxpayer-funded safety net benefits are committing fraud.
- Most Republicans, Democrat, and independent voters agree, however, there is an ideological divide. 78% of New Majority voters agree while 47% (a plurality) of Left Minority voters disagree.
Savings Not Cuts
- 53% would consider lower spending levels due to work requirements as safety net program “savings.” 25% would consider it to be safety net program “cuts.”
- There is no consensus on what should be done with these savings. The most popular choices are to keep the money in the programs or to reduce the debt and deficit. Among target voters, reducing the debt and deficit is most popular.
Support for Reforms to Federal Funding of Medicaid
- Most Americans support reforms that would fix funding loopholes and prioritize Medicaid dollars for the neediest Americans.
- 57% support reform of state provider taxes, which states use to boost federal Medicaid funding while diverting the tax funds to other programs.
- 59% support matching federal Medicaid funding for able-bodied adults to the lower rates for children, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities.
- 56% support limiting Medicaid to households below the federal poverty line while giving tax credits to those above to purchase private insurance.
- 66% support prioritizing federal Medicaid dollars for poorer states, so funding per person in poverty is more equal across states.
- 61% would consider spending reductions from reforms like these to be Medicaid “savings.” 19% say they would be Medicaid “cuts.”
- A plurality of voters would like to see spending reductions from these reforms to stay in the program. However, among target voters, support is strongest for reducing the debt and deficit.