| “Sicko” Gets Many Talking About Healthcare
If the potential impact of Michael Moore's documentary “Sicko” was dependent solely on those who have actually seen the film, the result might be a passionate but narrow conversation among the 4 percent of adults who said they watched it, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation poll. But with a big free media bounce reaching beyond the movie reviews to the news and talk shows, the new poll finds that almost half (46 percent) had seen the movie or heard or read something about it a little over a month after its national release. This is not much less than the share of adults (61 percent) who were aware of “An Inconvenient Truth,” the documentary on climate change featuring former Vice President Al Gore released in May 2006. Among those familiar with “Sicko,” 45 percent said they had a discussion with friends, co-workers or family about the U.S. health system as a result of the movie; 43 percent said they were more likely to think there is a need to reform the health system; 37 percent were more likely to think other countries have a better approach to healthcare; and 27 percent said they were paying more attention to the positions of presidential candidates on healthcare. About equal numbers of those aware of the movie thought it accurately represents problems in the U.S. health system (36 percent) versus overstating them (33 percent), and positive impressions of “Sicko” outweighed negative ones 48 percent to 33 percent. The movie has been much more likely to resonate with those already inclined to support its point of view. For example, 43 percent of self-identified liberals who are familiar with the film had a very positive impression of it, compared to 9 percent of conservatives. But its impact is not entirely predictable—while 56 percent of liberals familiar with the documentary report they are more likely to believe there is a need for reform of the U.S. healthcare system as a result, a smaller but still substantial share of conservatives aware of “Sicko” (29 percent) also said so, as did 23 percent of Republicans. And 37 percent of conservatives said they had a discussion with friends, co-workers or family about the health system following the movie, while 18 percent said they were paying more attention to what the presidential candidates are saying about healthcare. Results were similar by party identification. Still, “Sicko” has not altered what have long been the fundamental factors shaping the public's views on healthcare. When asked what has had the biggest impact on their opinions about the issue of healthcare recently, just 2 percent of the group aware of “Sicko” cited the film, 62 percent pointed to their personal healthcare experiences, and 9 percent said it's what they've heard or read about proposals from presidential candidates. The film's main targets—health insurers and HMOs—were viewed unfavorably by about half the public overall (51 percent and 46 percent, respectively), which is similar to perceptions of drug companies (52 percent unfavorable) and a larger share than viewed defense contractors unfavorably (41 percent). By contrast, hospitals and doctors were viewed largely favorably by the public. This article is provided as a service of ACA International's Healthcare Services Program. |
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