Obamacare has surged in popularity in the last month as congressional Republicans work to put together a plan to repeal the law, but the country remains deeply divided over the failed health care law.
Support for the Affordable Care Act has risen to 48 percent, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, which has tracked public approval of Obamacare since it became law in 2010. That’s the highest favorability rating since July, 2010, just months after President Obama signed it into law. At that time, an all-time high of 50 percent of the population approved.
Forty-two percent of respondents view the law unfavorably, down from a peak of 53 percent who were opposed in July, 2014.
This boost in popularity marks one of only a handful of times since 2010 where supporters of Obamacare outnumbered its detractors. The law’s favorability won out only in September and November of 2012, and April, June and August of 2015.
Americans are still split on whether they’d like to see the law repealed entirely: 47 percent say yes, while 48 percent say no. If repeal is on the table, more people among the general population support replacing the health care law at the same time.
Within the GOP, 48 percent would prefer a ‘repeal and replace’ bill, while just 31 percent want a repeal measure passed first.
Notably, a vast majority — 84 percent of respondents — said that states choosing to expand Medicaid under Obamacare should continue to get federal funding for their programs. That goes for Republicans too, 69 percent of whom agree.
Thirty-one states and Washington, D.C., chose to expand their Medicaid programs so far. At least one state, Kansas, is currently trying to expand their own Medicaid program before Congress moves to strike down the health care law. (RELATED: Kansas Makes Moves To Expand Medicaid Amid Obamacare Repeal)
Congressional Republicans are split on how to approach restructuring Medicaid. Obamacare allowed states to expand their Medicaid programs to those earning up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level, initially with 100 percent federal funding for the expansion, which would be ratcheted down to 90 percent by 2020.
Red states, which expanded Medicaid, have warned against nixing the extra funding in Obamacare repeal. Most recently, Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski said she would not vote to repeal Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion if Alaska’s state lawmakers support the program.
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