Different polls, different questions – but people are worried about health care

A new poll, Inform CT Consumer Confidence Survey, finds that almost two thirds of CT residents are worried about health insurance affordability, up 12% in the last year. A new Gallup poll found that Americans’ perceptions of the health care and drug industries are the lowest among all sectors except the federal government. That means they are below oil and gas, lawyers, and advertising. These are the worst rankings either health care or pharmaceuticals have ever scored in Gallup’s poll. (The authors note that the survey was fielded before the EpiPen price story broke in the media – it could be worse). The public is getting restless about rising health costs. We need to do a much better job and use smarter tools to fix the system. Econ 101 isn’t working.