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Two-thirds of Americans, including half of Republicans, say they want the government to spend more money to reduce health care costs — but they still like their health insurance and most are skeptical of Medicare for All, new polling data suggests.
When it comes to figuring out the specific policy to lower costs, only 43% want Medicare for All — which would create a single-payer health system operated by the US government, polling released on Tuesday by Axios-Ipsos shows.
In contrast, nearly a quarter (24%) oppose universal Medicare, while almost a third (32%) say they aren’t sure.
However, the move is popular with 62% of Democrats, many of whom want to see a similar system to the United Kingdom’s National Health Service, which is free at the point of access but paid for through taxes.
Nearly half (47%) of independents also said they supported the idea, polling showed.
“People are justifiably angry at the high and rising cost and inefficiency of health care in the US,” Mark Washawsky, Senior Fellow at the right-wing public policy think tank the American Enterprise Institute, told The Post.
“But, in these surveys, they are not aware of the extremely high taxes, restrictions on care, slowing of innovation, and political rent-seeking that will result if Medicare for all is adopted,” Washawsky said.
“A better way is to introduce effective competition into the sector, while making sure everyone is covered and supporting those most in financial need,” he added.
More than 70 million people are enrolled in Medicare, which insures Americans 65 and over and some people with disabilities.
It is the federal government’s third largest expense after Social Security and interest on the national debt — consuming 14% total spending. Medicare paid out $1.2 trillion last year — twice the figure a decade ago.
Opponents of Medicare for All said they fear a worse quality of care than private insurance, while others feared it would become too expensive for taxpayers or expand the size of the government too much.
Many respondents said they would be more likely to support a congressional candidate who favored expanding government subsidies of health care costs, reinstating enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits that expired in 2026, and expanding prescription drug discount platforms.
Republicans were particularly divided over expanding government subsidies for health care costs, with 31% more likely to back a candidate who supports the idea, 29% less likely, and 31% saying it would make no difference.
Insurance premiums are up 27% since 2020, according to Kaiser Family Foundation data.
The survey also showed plummeting support for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose level of trust is now at a record low of 25%.
Trust in both congressional Democrats (25%) and Republicans (20%) is also at record lows ahead of next month’s midterm elections.
And trust in President Trump for health-related information also fell to a record low of 20%, the survey shows.
Polling consistently shows that insurance costs are the biggest concerns for Americans when it comes to their health care.
Almost a third (29%) of Americans surveyed said that the cost of health care is the “most urgent health problem” facing the country, according to a Gallup study conducted in December 2025.
That represented a rise from 23% just a year earlier, and was the highest level recorded since 2004.
Health care cost now outpaces access and obesity—at 17% and 8% respectively—as what Americans consider the nation’s top health problem.