George Stephanopoulos grossly misrpresented a new ABC poll on public views about the health reform effort and Obama’s handling of that issue. Appearing on Good Morning America, George claimed that support for health care reform rose when you left out the public option.

The poll doesn’t say that and strongly suggests the opposite. Stephanopoulos owes the public an apology and a correction.

Watch this video.

In fact, the new poll shows continuing majority support — 55 percent – for having the choice of a public option. Moreover, when the public option is explained to those who first say they oppose it, total support leaps to 76 percent.

Thus, when the 42 percent who somewhat or strongly opposed the public plan were told that it would be a choice available only to those who currently don’t have insurance, half of them switched to support the public option, including a large increase in support from Republicans.

Here’s how the ABC pollsters describe their own results:

PUBLIC OPTION – On specifics in the health care plan, 55 percent support a so-called public option, with 42 percent opposed – slightly less opposition than in last month’s 52-46 percent division, but still shy of the initial reaction in June, 62-33 percent support.

That June poll found that support for a public option drops dramatically if it would put many private insurers out of business, as critics claim. This poll shows a flip side: Support for a public option swells to 76 percent if it were available only to people who can’t get coverage from a private insurer.[*] The increase is most dramatic among Republicans, a 32-point gain to 59 percent support; and seniors, a 33-point gain to 68 percent. Something like this was suggested by Obama, who said in his address the option would be available only to people who “don’t have”
insurance; herein may be a path to compromise.

Some proponents of reform have described a public option as an essential element; Obama, on the other hand, has not. And as noted, without a public option, this poll finds support for reform’s remaining elements at 50-42 percent. (Despite some threats, support among liberals is nearly as high without a public option as with one.)

The most plausible interpretation of the poll is that many Americans mistakenly believe they would be forced to give up what they currently have and accept the government-sponsored insurance plan, because there would be no other choice. But when they’re reassured on that point, they overwhelmingly support having the choice of a public insurance option.

George’s unsupported claim adds to other Beltway efforts that distort the facts to further their own belief — that if only the Democrats would do what Republicans want, public support would go up. But the truth is, when the public learns that what the Republicans are saying is false, the support for Democratic proposals goes up, even among Republicans.

George Stephanopoulos badly distorted the findings of ABC’s poll on a key public issue. He and ABC owe the public an immediate correction and an apology.

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To view the actual poll results, check out the pdf link in this article, especially questions 23, 24, and 25, and page 6.

* It’s unclear why ABC asked the question this way. The current bills limit access to the exchange, and hencee to the public option to those currently without insurance, the self-insured, and small businesses with only a few employees. None of the bills limits the public option only to "people who can’t get coverage from a private insurer." Did people interpret this literally? Or as a proxy for those who don’t currently have, or can’t afford, private insurance?

Update:
Dean Baker takes on the WaPo for the same misrepresentation.
Dean Baker ridicules NYT for noting Obama logically extropolates future outcome from past/current trends on folks losing health insurance