Seniors Still Negative on Impact of Medicare Drug Program

GALLUP NEWS SERVICE

PRINCETON, NJ -- Senior citizens have until Monday to enroll without penalties in the new Medicare prescription drug plan, and it may be months or years thereafter before the true impact of the plan can be judged. Still, a recent USA Today/Gallup poll shows that a majority of seniors believe the plan is not working, although they are slightly less critical than they were in January. Seniors (and adults of all ages) appear, however, to have given Congress credit for trying to address the issue of drug costs for seniors; a majority of Americans say they are more likely to vote for a member of Congress who supported the program.

These results from a late April USA Today/Gallup poll show similar points of view on the plan among the entire sample of national adults as well as the subset of those aged 65 and older.

As you may know, a new government program began on January 1 that provides prescription drug coverage to Medicare recipients. Based on what you have read or heard, do you think that program is working or not working?

The results show that about half of all Americans, and a majority of seniors, say the program is not working. Thirty-six percent of Americans and 33% of seniors believe the plan is working.

The percentage of all Americans who believe the new prescription drug program is working has gone up by nine percentage points since January. Among seniors, the increase has been 13 points.

The net "working" to "not working" difference is -13 among national adults (down from -27 in January), and is -20 among seniors (down from -38 in January).

A recent New York Times/CBS News poll found that only 39% of those 65 and older had joined the program, and that another 10% said they planned on joining. That leaves half of seniors who do not plan on joining.

The same poll found some ambivalence among seniors about the plan's ultimate financial impact. Forty-two percent of those enrolled in the program said they were spending less for drugs under the plan, while the rest either said they were spending the same, were unsure, or were spending more. More generally, a slight plurality (44%) of seniors said they believed that in the long run, the plan would not significantly reduce the cost of prescription drugs for the elderly, while 40% said that it would.

It appears, however, that whether the plan is ultimately perceived as effective, passing it will not have been a political liability for Congress. A 57% majority of national adults, as well as the subgroup of seniors, say they would be more likely to vote for a member of Congress who supported the plan. A much smaller percentage say they would be less likely to vote for a member who supported it.

Would you be more likely or less likely to vote for a member of Congress who supported the Medicare prescription drug benefit program?

The percentage of positive responses from seniors has increased slightly since last December when Gallup first asked this question.

Although the plan was passed by a Republican-controlled Congress, the New York Times/CBS News poll found that by a substantial 61% to 18% margin, Americans believe the Democratic Party is more likely to make prescription drugs for the elderly more affordable.

Survey Methods

Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,011 national adults, aged 18 and older, conducted April 28-30, 2006. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls. For results based on the sample of 247 adults aged 65 and older, the maximum margin of sampling error is ±7 percentage points.