Investing in disease prevention receives majority support among Americans

Nov 16 2009

Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) released a new public opinion survey today that finds that 71 percent of Americans favor an increased investment in disease prevention and that disease prevention is one of the most popular components of health reform. Forty-four percent of Americans strongly favor investing more in prevention.

In the poll, conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and Public Opinion Strategies, investing in disease prevention receives majority support from across the political spectrum (85 percent of Democrats, 59 percent of Republicans, and 68 percent of Independents) and across the country (72 percent in the Northeast, 73 percent in the South, 71 percent in the West, and 69 percent in the Midwest).

"Prevention is clearly one of the most popular parts of health reform," said Al Quinlan, President of Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research. "Americans see a real payoff for investing in disease prevention in terms of lowering disease rates and reducing health care costs."

By nearly a three-to-one margin (70 percent to 24 percent), people think prevention will save money rather than cost money. Sixty percent of Americans believe investing in prevention is worth it at a cost of $34 billion out of the $900 billion total proposed health reform spending proposals. Sixty-five percent of Americans say they would either be more likely to support a member of Congress who votes for the proposal to invest in prevention or that it would make no difference to their vote.

"Support for an increased investment in prevention is both robust and broad," said Bill McInturff, Partner and Co-Founder of Public Opinion Strategies. "There is nearly a four-to-one margin of people who feel strongly that we should invest more in prevention versus those who are strongly against it. Even when people learn the price tag in the context of health reform, Americans are supportive of increasing the nation's investment in prevention and believe it will have a positive impact on improving health and lowering health costs down the road."

Nearly two-thirds of Americans rank investing in prevention between an eight and ten on a scale of zero to ten, where zero means not at all an important health care priority and ten means very important. Prevention is the second highest proposal tested, after prohibiting insurance companies from denying coverage because of age, medical history, or pre-existing conditions. Other proposals tested included providing tax credits to small businesses and requiring all businesses to provide health care for their employees or contribute to a fund to help pay for their coverage.

"This poll shows that Americans strongly favor specific proposals that focus on keeping Americans healthier in the first place instead of only treating them after they've become sick," said Jeff Levi, PhD, Executive Director of TFAH.

"Investing in proven prevention programs and policy changes that make it easier for all Americans to make healthier choices is essential for building a healthier America," said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, M.D., M.B.A., president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "Prevention happens where we live, learn, work, and play. Prevention happens when restaurants and workplaces are smoke free and when our neighborhoods have fresh, healthy foods and safe places to be active."

Majorities of Americans were found to favor specific key disease prevention reform proposals, including:

• 82 percent of Americans favor a proposal to ensure that public health workers are well trained, have up-to-date laboratories, and are adequately equipped to communicate with the public about health threats. 51 percent of Americans strongly favor this proposal;
• 73 percent of Americans favor a proposal to provide for education loan repayment to make sure we have enough public health professionals to combat shortages in health departments and meet health needs. 42 percent of Americans strongly favor this proposal;
• 72 percent of Americans favor a proposal to establish a Public Health Investment Fund that would dedicate annual funding to prevention. This would be used to invest in improving nutrition and physical activity in our schools and communities, expand access to immunizations, and test new approaches to staying healthy so people have the information to make their own best decisions about how to be healthy and prevent disease. 45 percent of Americans strongly favor this proposal;
• 58 percent of Americans favor a proposal to create a National Prevention and Wellness Strategy to coordinate our efforts by assessing the health of our country, establishing priorities, and setting health goals. All community programs would be held accountable to rigorous evaluation to ensure we are investing in things that work. 29 percent of Americans strongly favor this proposal; and
• 58 percent of Americans favor a Preventive Services Task Force, an independent entity that reviews scientific evidence and cost-effectiveness of prevention programs, which recommends ways to improve prevention programs and provide local community health services with key information to help people make healthier choices. 28 percent of Americans strongly favor this proposal.