Health, Health Care Costs, and Attitudes towards Government

• In Event: Public Meets Health Policy: How Public Influences Up, How Policy Influences Down

Abstract

A growing body of research suggests that there is an important relationship between health status and forms of political engagement, like voting. Less is known about the mechanisms through which these outcomes occur. Specifically, little is known about the relationship between health and attitudes towards government, like trust and how responsive Americans feel the government is (or is not) to their needs. I explore this relationship—as well as the relationship between Americans’ anxiety about their own health care costs and attitudes towards government—using 2020 data from the American National Elections Studies (ANES) Time Series study. I find that worse health status and increased anxiety about health care costs is associated with lower levels of trust in government, and decreases the likelihood that Americans feel that the government responds to their needs. This study has important implications for how we view the consequences of poor health and financial burdens associated with health care.

Author

• Gabriella Aboulafia, Harvard University