Loss Aversion and the Framing of the Health Care Reform Debate
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David L Eckles
The high-stakes debate over health care reform captured the public's attention for nearly a year. Options ranging from fully nationalized insurance to maintaining the status quo were considered, though little consensus as to the appropriate solution emerged. Most surveys indicated an agreement that a problem existed with the current health care system and a clear and consistent majority favored taking some action on health care reform. However, clear public support for any specific reform proposal was difficult to muster since most individuals also indicated satisfaction with their own health care. This paper explores this disconnect in public opinion within the context of loss aversion. We note that even as elites actively attempted to frame the issue to counteract the public's loss averse tendencies, these strategies met with little success in generating support for Obama's reform plan. However, we also argue that these loss averse tendencies will now work against any Republican efforts to repeal the health reform legislation.
©2011 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Article
- The Scenic Road to Nowhere: Reflections on the History of National Health Insurance in the United States
- Harry Reid and Health Care Reform in the Senate: Transactional Leadership in a Transformational Moment?
- Problem Solving in a Polarized Age: Comparative Effectiveness Research and the Politicization of Evidence-Based Medicine
- Simulating Representation: Elite Mobilization and Political Power in Health Care Reform
- Why the "Death Panel" Myth Wouldn't Die: Misinformation in the Health Care Reform Debate
- After the "Housequake": Leadership and Partisanship in the Post-2006 House
- Loss Aversion and the Framing of the Health Care Reform Debate
- Public Opinion on Health Care Reform
- Why Major Health Reform in 2009-10 Won't Solve Our Problems
- Review
- Review of Presidential Party Building: Dwight D. Eisenhower to George W. Bush
- Review of Fighting for Democracy: Black Veterans and the Struggle Against White Supremacy in the Postwar South
Articles in the same Issue
- Article
- The Scenic Road to Nowhere: Reflections on the History of National Health Insurance in the United States
- Harry Reid and Health Care Reform in the Senate: Transactional Leadership in a Transformational Moment?
- Problem Solving in a Polarized Age: Comparative Effectiveness Research and the Politicization of Evidence-Based Medicine
- Simulating Representation: Elite Mobilization and Political Power in Health Care Reform
- Why the "Death Panel" Myth Wouldn't Die: Misinformation in the Health Care Reform Debate
- After the "Housequake": Leadership and Partisanship in the Post-2006 House
- Loss Aversion and the Framing of the Health Care Reform Debate
- Public Opinion on Health Care Reform
- Why Major Health Reform in 2009-10 Won't Solve Our Problems
- Review
- Review of Presidential Party Building: Dwight D. Eisenhower to George W. Bush
- Review of Fighting for Democracy: Black Veterans and the Struggle Against White Supremacy in the Postwar South
