{"id":647299,"date":"2024-11-26T08:00:27","date_gmt":"2024-11-26T13:00:27","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-08-11T17:04:37","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T21:04:37","slug":"lessons-from-the-election-about-voters-and-health","status":"publish","type":"from-drew-altman","link":"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/from-drew-altman\/lessons-from-the-election-about-voters-and-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Lessons From the Election About Voters and Health"},"content":{"rendered":"<div\n\tclass=\"wp-block-kff-shared-content--standard-layout wp-block-kff-shared-content\">\n\t\n\n<section class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-content-main\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"post-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<h1 class=\"post-header__title\">Lessons From the Election About Voters and Health<\/h1>\n\n\t\n\t\t\t<div class=\"post-header__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"post-header__meta-label\">\n\t\t\t\tAuthor:\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/person\/drew-altman\/\">Drew Altman<\/a> \t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"post-header__meta-label\">Published:<\/span>\n\t\t\t<date>Nov 26, 2024<\/date>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<div class=\"post-header__social-sharing\">\n\t\t<button class=\"post-header__social-sharing__button print\">\n\t\t\t<svg width=\"16\" height=\"17\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n\t\t\t\t<path d=\"M4.348 2.5v3.391H2.783A.787.787 0 0 0 2 6.674v4.696c0 .429.353.782.783.782h1.565V14.5h7.304v-2.348h1.565c.43 0 .783-.353.783-.782V6.674a.787.787 0 0 0-.783-.783h-1.565V2.5H4.348Zm.522.522h6.26v2.87H4.87v-2.87ZM2.783 6.413h1.782a.26.26 0 0 0 .085 0h6.697a.26.26 0 0 0 .086 0h1.784c.148 0 .261.114.261.26v4.697c0 .147-.113.26-.26.26h-1.566V9.283H4.348v2.347H2.783a.257.257 0 0 1-.261-.26V6.674c0-.147.113-.261.26-.261Zm9.39.783a.522.522 0 1 0 0 1.043.522.522 0 0 0 0-1.043ZM4.87 9.804h6.26v2.043a.264.264 0 0 0 0 .086v2.045H4.87v-2.043a.261.261 0 0 0 0-.085V9.804Zm1.043.783a.262.262 0 0 0-.265.26.26.26 0 0 0 .265.262h4.174a.26.26 0 1 0 0-.522H5.913Zm0 1.043a.26.26 0 1 0 0 .522h3.13a.26.26 0 1 0 0-.522h-3.13Zm0 1.044a.26.26 0 1 0 0 .522h4.174a.262.262 0 0 0 .264-.261.26.26 0 0 0-.264-.261H5.913Z\" fill=\"#004B88\" stroke=\"#004B88\" stroke-width=\".5\"\/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\n\t\t\tPrint\t\t<\/button>\n\t\t<a href=\"mailto:?subject=Lessons%20From%20the%20Election%20About%20Voters%20and%20Health&#038;body=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kff.org%2Ffrom-drew-altman%2Flessons-from-the-election-about-voters-and-health%2F\" class=\"post-header__social-sharing__button\">\n\t\t\t<svg width=\"16\" height=\"17\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n\t\t\t\t<path d=\"M2.333 4.25h-.25v9.14h12.5V4.25H2.333Zm1.083 1.693-.353-.2V5.23h10.54v.513l-.353.2L8.333 8.73 3.416 5.943Zm-.353 6.467V6.884l.107.06 5.04 2.857.123.07.123-.07 5.04-2.857.107-.06v5.526H3.063Z\" fill=\"#004B88\" stroke=\"#004B88\" stroke-width=\".5\"\/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\n\t\t\tEmail\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<button class=\"post-header__social-sharing__button copy\">\n\t\t\t<svg width=\"16\" height=\"17\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n\t\t\t\t<path d=\"M11.533 2.9c-.615 0-1.23.235-1.697.702L8.502 4.936a2.4 2.4 0 0 0-.575 2.46l.958-.958a1.32 1.32 0 0 1 .371-.748l1.334-1.333a1.331 1.331 0 0 1 1.886 0c.52.52.52 1.365 0 1.885l-1.334 1.333c-.21.21-.474.331-.748.372l-.958.958a2.393 2.393 0 0 0 2.46-.576l1.334-1.333a2.402 2.402 0 0 0 0-3.394 2.393 2.393 0 0 0-1.697-.702Zm-1.61 3.46a.533.533 0 0 0-.367.162l-3.2 3.2a.533.533 0 1 0 .754.754l3.2-3.2a.534.534 0 0 0-.387-.915ZM6.586 7.973a2.388 2.388 0 0 0-1.816.697l-1.334 1.333a2.403 2.403 0 0 0 0 3.394 2.393 2.393 0 0 0 1.697.702c.614 0 1.229-.234 1.697-.702l1.333-1.334a2.4 2.4 0 0 0 .576-2.46l-.959.958a1.32 1.32 0 0 1-.37.749l-1.334 1.333a1.334 1.334 0 0 1-1.886-1.885l1.334-1.334c.21-.21.474-.331.748-.372l.958-.957c-.21-.07-.426-.11-.644-.122Z\" fill=\"#004B88\"\/>\n\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\n\t\t\t<span>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hidden beneath all the election polling data&nbsp;that KFF&nbsp;collected was&nbsp;yet&nbsp;another lesson about framing health as an economic issue for voters:&nbsp;The only pocketbook concern voters cared about more than their health costs was the cost of food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With Robert&nbsp;F.&nbsp;Kennedy Jr.&nbsp;and Dr.&nbsp;Mehmet&nbsp;Oz nominated to lead critical health agencies to \u201cmake America healthy again\u201d (MAHA), it\u2019s notable that what voters wanted wasn\u2019t exactly a healthier country, it was to lower their health care costs. They weren\u2019t voting on lowering the burden of chronic illness,&nbsp;which as RFK&nbsp;Jr.&nbsp;says on his website \u201cis bankrupting America.\u201d&nbsp;That\u2019s certainly a worthy goal, and people do want to be healthier,&nbsp;but it wasn\u2019t&nbsp;voters\u2019 main goal in an election centered on the cost of living for so many.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Moreover, any cuts Republicans might make in the Medicaid and Affordable&nbsp;Care&nbsp;Act (ACA)&nbsp;to pay for tax cuts could exacerbate the out-of-pocket costs voters worry about most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Neither Kennedy&nbsp;nor&nbsp;Oz have called for program cuts or generally for dialing back the federal role in health or federal spending. But in their positions,&nbsp;they would be saddled with&nbsp;the reality of BIG cuts&nbsp;and the controversy surrounding them if they happen, potentially derailing other agendas. If millions are losing coverage or forced into skimpier coverage, it will be tough to go on the Sunday shows and talk about much else.&nbsp;At the moment, it looks the health agenda will be bifurcated in the new administration, with HHS and its agencies driving the health and public health agenda, and the executive branch (the Office of Management and Budget, Domestic Policy Council, others in the White House), and Congress, driving changes and cuts to the big entitlement programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Arguably, the immediate purpose of the three giant programs Dr Oz will oversee\u2014Medicaid, Medicare, and the ACA\u2014is not health at all, but access to care and financial security. The determinants of \u201chealth\u201d are complex and involve much more than insurance coverage. That\u2019s why an MD is not necessarily a qualification for the job\u2014although&nbsp;it doesn\u2019t necessarily hurt\u2014and&nbsp;some of the best&nbsp;Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services&nbsp;(CMS)&nbsp;administrators have not been physicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To be fair, no pollster I know of asked voters how much they cared about reducing the burden of chronic illness compared with other health priorities (KFF&nbsp;can do so going forward). What we do know&nbsp;from prior polling however&nbsp;is that as a stand-alone issue \u201chealth care\u201d ranked&nbsp;pretty far&nbsp;down voters\u2019 issue priority list, behind the economy, immigration, democracy (for some voters),&nbsp;crime and other concerns. And remember, issues themselves are only one factor influencing voters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, framed as an element of voters\u2019 economic concerns\u2014the&nbsp;dominant issue in the election\u2014health&nbsp;care costs&nbsp;were&nbsp;much more salient, ranking after the cost of food as <a href=\"https:\/\/modern.kff.org\/womens-health-policy\/poll-finding\/the-role-health-care-issues-played-in-the-2024-election-an-analysis-of-ap-votecast\/\">an economic problem voters were VERY CONCERNED about<\/a>, ahead of housing costs and the cost of gas. Given the dominance of economic concerns, it\u2019s hard not to see the cost of health care as a much more important issue than it is generally given credit for being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"datawrapper-embed block--datawrapper-embed \">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div style=\"min-height: 285px;\">\n\t\t\t<script\n\t\t\t\ttype=\"text\/javascript\"\n\t\t\t\tdefer\n\t\t\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/mMDg5\/embed.js?v=14\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<img\n\t\t\tclass=\"datawrapper-embed__print-img\"\n\t\t\tsrc=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/mMDg5\/full.png\"\n\t\t\talt=\"Voters Rank Cost of Living Concerns\"\n\t\t\/>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Possibly sensing this, and without any big health proposals of her own, Vice President Harris\u2019 campaign presented her health plans as part of her <a href=\"https:\/\/modern.kff.org\/from-drew-altman\/harris-is-reframing-health-as-an-economic-issue\/\">economic package<\/a>. In the end, even as&nbsp;Vice President&nbsp;Harris closed the gap on the economy, the strategy was overwhelmed by pro-Trump sentiment giving him a narrow win in the popular vote and a decisive one in the electoral college. In fact, voters said President-elect Trump was better able to handle high costs,&nbsp;including in health care, even as they generally <a href=\"https:\/\/modern.kff.org\/womens-health-policy\/poll-finding\/kff-health-tracking-poll-september-2024-harris-v-trump-on-key-health-care-issues\/\">trusted Vice President Harris more<\/a> on health. We saw a similar dynamic on&nbsp;abortion,&nbsp;where strong support for reproductive rights and several state ballot initiatives did not translate into a Harris win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another lesson from the election is that language may also matter. Messages like \u201chealth care is a right\u201d and&nbsp;\u201cuniversal coverage\u201d have deep meaning for many of us in health care. They are a statement of values and&nbsp;hard words to abandon as a matter of principle. But to some voters they are also signals of&nbsp;big government, liberalism, and the federal government, all of which can&nbsp;alienate them. &nbsp;Most voters are not endorsing health policy goals, they just want help with their health care bills. That\u2019s why they will&nbsp;oppose some&nbsp;Republican ideas that initially sound good to them, like Medicaid block grants, when they learn they might cut their coverage or cost them more. And&nbsp;they\u2019ll likewise oppose some&nbsp;Democratic&nbsp;ideas&nbsp;that sound too expansive&nbsp;or that&nbsp;can\u2019t connect to their everyday problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The need to reframe health for voters as a pocketbook issue will also be central to the competition for the votes of working class and Latino voters, two groups very focused on the cost of living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Health was not a flashpoint between the candidates in this election. One had modest proposals and the other, intentionally, said next to nothing. Health care can be a big issue in elections if controversial cuts are being made in health programs, or a health reform plan is the focus of debate. Neither applied in this election. But the role people\u2019s health care costs played as an economic issue for voters was under-appreciated. There is a video of me on C-SPAN speaking to the old Alliance for Health Reform (now renamed) presenting polling arguing for framing health care as an economic issue around the time of the Clinton health reform debate. That was in 1993! I guess I haven\u2019t stopped. Neither have the voters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\t<div class=\"post-footer\">\n\t<div class=\"post-footer__title\">More On<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"post-footer__links\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/topic\/elections\/\">\n\t\t\t\tElections\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/topic\/health-costs\/\">\n\t\t\t\tHealth Costs\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/topic\/public-opinion\/\">\n\t\t\t\tPublic Opinion\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/tag\/affordability\/\">\n\t\t\t\tAffordability\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/tag\/politics\/\">\n\t\t\t\tPolitics\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/tag\/voting\/\">\n\t\t\t\tVoting\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t<\/section>\n\n\n<section class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-content-sidebar\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n<div class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content--green wp-block-kff-shared-related-content\">\n\t<h2 class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__heading\">Also of Interest<\/h2>\n\t<div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__card\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/womens-health-policy\/the-role-health-care-issues-played-in-the-2024-election-an-analysis-of-ap-votecast\/\" class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__link\">\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__card-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\tThe Role Health Care Issues Played in the 2024 Election: An Analysis of AP VoteCast\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__card\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/from-drew-altman\/harris-is-reframing-health-as-an-economic-issue\/\" class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__link\">\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__card-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\tHarris is Reframing Health as an Economic Issue\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__card\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kff.org\/womens-health-policy\/kff-health-tracking-poll-september-2024-harris-v-trump-on-key-health-care-issues\/\" class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__link\">\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"wp-block-kff-shared-related-content__card-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\tKFF Health Tracking Poll September 2024: Harris v. Trump on Key Health Care Issues\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\t\t\t<\/section>\n\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this column, KFF president and CEO Drew Altman explores why health costs weigh heavily among voters&#8217; economic concerns, even in an election where health was not a flashpoint. The need to reframe health as a pocketbook issue for voters will be central to the competition for the votes of working class Latino voters, two groups very focused on the cost of living.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48746306,"featured_media":647433,"template":"","meta":{"authors":[{"type":"foundation","id":49507,"name":""}],"exhibits":[],"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_classifai_error":"","_classifai_text_to_speech_error":"","search_keywords":"From Drew Altman, 10540, Drew Altman","shortlink":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[31174,1274092,63719],"tags":[34948,398,579145449],"series":[579145466],"partner":[],"content-types":[579145480],"program":[],"class_list":["post-647299","from-drew-altman","type-from-drew-altman","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-elections","category-health-costs","category-public-opinion","tag-affordability","tag-politics","tag-voting","series-beyond-the-data","content-types-from-drew-altman"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.9 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Lessons From the Election About Voters and Health | KFF<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In this column, KFF president and CEO Drew Altman explores why health costs weigh heavily among voters&#039; economic concerns, even in an election where health was not a flashpoint. 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