Poll: 56% of Americans support Medicare for All

This month’s poll finds that majorities favor a national Medicare-for-all health plan (56%) and favor a “public option” (68%) in which a government-administered plan would compete with private health insurance and be available to all Americans.

Though both proposed changes to the nation’s health care system have majority support, a public option that would compete with private health insurance plans continues to garner more support than the more sweeping change presented in a Medicare-for-all plan (Click here to see a side-by-side comparison of the competing proposals). Large majorities of Democrats favor both proposals (77% Medicare-for-all, 85% public option), as do majorities of independents (61% Medicare-for-all, 73% public option). Among Republicans, one in four (24%) support a national Medicare-for-all plan and four in ten (42%) favor a public option.