Hillary Clinton: Politics, media to blame for O-Care unpopularity

Hillary Clinton expressed dismay Tuesday at polling numbers that show ObamaCare is still unpopular with the public, arguing people have been misled about the healthcare reform law’s benefits.

{mosads}“A small majority of Americans don’t like the Affordable Care Act,” said the former secretary of State and potential presidential candidate at an event in Washington. “But a large majority of Americans don’t want to do away with many of the provisions in the act.”

Her comments come on the heels of several studies that have shown even though the law exceeded enrollment expectations, most people are still unhappy with it. A Pew/USA Today poll released Monday found 55 percent of people in the United States disapprove of the healthcare law, versus 41 percent who support it.

Speaking at the 2014 National Council for Behavioral Health Conference, Clinton attributed the law’s unpopularity to misinformation from critics and the news media’s treatment of both sides of the debate as equally valid.

“If you tell people long enough with great passion they get inclined to believe it,” she added. “I just want to get back to evidence-based decision making.”

Clinton also criticized governors who are preventing their states from expanding Medicaid under the healthcare law.

“Here’s what I don’t understand. How can any elected official can turn down the opportunity to let federal government pay for Medicaid?” she asked. “I don’t understand why those elected officials let politics drive what would be a good choice for their state.”