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72% of Physicians Support a Public Option

Elyas Bakhtiari, for HealthLeaders Media, September 17, 2009

That statement initially surprised me given all the complaints I have heard about Medicare, but not as much as this next finding: More than half (58.3%) of physicians surveyed would support expanding Medicare to individuals 55 to 64 years of age.

The study didn't even find the substantial divisions in support between specialties noted in surveys from before the healthcare debate began. "We were mostly surprised by the consistency of the support," says Federman. "There was support of a public option in the southern regions of the United States, there was support for it among surgeons, there was support for it even among AMA members, and that's what really what surprised us."

The survey was conducted from June 25 through the end of August, when the public debate was at a fever pitch, and physician responses remained consistent throughout the period, explains Federman.

Of course, support for a public option doesn't necessarily translate into support for the other specifics of the reform legislation. And it doesn't discount the fact that there is genuine physician opposition to both.

But while the debate, even on the physician side, has been driven by the loudest voices, the survey suggests there is a largely silent majority of physicians that could have an impact on the outcome.

I keep going back to a poll conducted earlier this year by Gallup, only because it is so revealing: The public trusts physicians more than anyone else—politician or otherwise—to inform them about healthcare reform.

In that context, this week's survey showing physician support for the public option could prove more influential in its ultimate fate than even President Obama's endorsement during his address to Congress last week.

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Elyas Bakhtiari is a managing editor with HealthLeaders Media. He can be reached at ebakhtiari@healthleadersmedia.com.

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5 comments on "72% of Physicians Support a Public Option"


wrf (9/18/2009 at 8:26 PM)
Sigh...... The study is here: http://healthcarereform.nejm.org/?p=1790&query=home Statistical appendix here: http://content.nejm.org/cgi/data/NEJMp0908239/DC1/1 Here are the choices: Respondents were asked to indicate which of three options they would most strongly support: 1. Public and Private Options: Provide people under age 65 the choice of enrolling in a new public health insurance plan (like Medicare) or in private plans. 2. Private Options Only: Provide people with tax credits or low-income subsidies to buy private insurance coverage (without creating a public plan option). 3. Public Option Only: Eliminate private insurance and cover everyone in a single public plan like Medicare. Here is the response: Number 1. (Choice of public or private) 62.9% Number 2. (Private only) 27.3% Number 3. (Public only) 9.6% To favor allowing someone the ability to pick A or B does not mean one favors A or B. It means one favors the ability to choose. To conflate Number One (choice-62.9%) with Number Three (only public-9.6%), and conclude that "72% of Physicians support a Public Option", shows either a profound ignorance of basic English and basic statistics, or a profound bias. I suspect the latter. And this is a publication that is going to the people who claim the expertise to reform the American healthcare system? Give me a break.

Richard Besserman, M.D. (9/17/2009 at 5:26 PM)
In this NEJM study less than 10% favor the public option only, the equivalent of "socialized" medicine. Note that Investors Business Daily conducted a TIPP poll which revealed strikingly different results. In its most recent coverage of the subject Terry Jones reports that their poll reveals that "45% Of Doctors Would Consider Quitting If Congress Passes Health Care Overhaul." (http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article.aspx?id=506199)

Martin Brubeck, MD (9/17/2009 at 3:42 PM)
One should not dismiss a poll (particularly one published in NEJM) because one doesn't agree with it. I believe the results because we all deal with patients who have become uninsured and understand their plight. We are also not scared of government involvement in medicine. In fact, dealing with Medicare is far easier than dealing with private insurance. Unfortunately, the AMA, with its overly conservative values, no longer speaks for the vast majority of doctors. The AMA remains obsessed with protecting physician incomes without considering why we became doctors in the first place--to take care of patients.