It’s an easy prediction that we’re going to be deluged with polls and surveys that present the new healthcare system in a misleadingly positive light or that show the public is slowly embracing it.
Case in point: A deceptively worded survey by the National Council on Aging apparently tries to show that senior citizens just don’t realize how great the new healthcare system is going to be for them. Eagle-eyed Grace-Marie Turner, analyst at the Galen Institute, dissects the results.
News reports said that the seniors answered the survey questions incorrectly. Turns out they knew a heck a lot about what the new system has in store for them. Here are some examples:
• “The new law will result in future cuts to your basic Medicare benefits.” By more than two to one, seniors said the statement was true; the survey said that was wrong.
• “The new law is projected to increase the federal budget deficit over the next ten years and beyond.” By more than three to one, seniors said that was true; the survey said that was wrong.
• “The health care reform law will cut Medicare payments to doctors.” Seniors said true by three to one; wrong answer, according to the survey.
A Kaiser survey reports similar findings. But it appears that senior citizens refuse to be fooled about the new system and how it will affect their lives.