Voters Across Party Lines Support Reimbursing At-Home Coronavirus Tests
By Lew Blank and Kirby Phares
The Omicron variant is posing an increasing threat of a spike in U.S. coronavirus cases, and one of the most important ways we can slow its spread is by testing as many people as quickly as possible. At-home rapid coronavirus tests are a key way to make testing more accessible for millions of Americans, but their cost — ranging from $7 to $15 per test — is prohibitive for many people.
To make coronavirus testing more accessible, President Biden released a plan earlier this month to require private insurance companies to reimburse Americans who purchase at-home coronavirus tests. Making at-home tests free of charge has proven effective in New Hampshire, and if applied nationally it could help millions of Americans quickly know whether they’re uninfected or if they need to stay at home.
In a new survey, we tested voter support for Biden’s new rule. We find that an overwhelming majority of voters across party lines support requiring private insurance companies to reimburse Americans for buying at-home coronavirus tests. This includes a +75-point margin of Democrats, a +45-point margin of Independents, and a +9-point margin of Republicans.
This polling demonstrates that the Biden administration’s new rule to make at-home testing free of charge is a key way to slow the spread of the coronavirus while also gaining support from voters.
Lew Blank (@LewBlank) is a senior writer at Data for Progress.
Kirby Phares (@kirbyphares) is a polling analyst at Data for Progress.