Americans remain split on stalled health care legislation, but some provisions popular among most Democrats, Independents and Republicans

As US President Barack Obama holds his health care 'summit' tomorrow to try to salvage his dream of health care reform with new compromises (The Pharma Letter February 23), the US public is still split on health care reform legislation, with 43 %in favor and a like percentage opposed, according to the latest findings of the Kaiser Tracking Poll. However, the poll also finds that majorities of Americans of all political leanings support several provisions in the health reform proposals in Congress and most attribute delays in passing the legislation to political gamesmanship rather than policy disagreements.

As Democratic and GOP (Republican) lawmakers prepare for the upcoming health reform summit, the February Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds that at least six of every 10 Republicans, Democrats and independents back at least some of the key provisions in the reform bills that have passed the House of Representatives and Senate. They include measures that would: reform the way health insurance works, such as preventing insurers from excluding people because of pre-existing conditions; offer tax credits to small businesses to help their workers get coverage; create a new health insurance marketplace; help close the Medicare "donut hole" so that seniors would no longer face a period of having to pay the full cost of their medicines; and expand high-risk insurance pools for individuals who cannot get coverage elsewhere. Providing subsidies to lower and middle income people also received strong support from Democrats and independents and near majority support from Republicans.

"While the intense debate over health care reform has divided the public, it looks like there is bipartisan support on at least some elements of health reform legislation, and more bipartisan support outside the beltway than there is inside," said Kaiser president and chief executive Drew Altman.