WASHINGTON (AP) -- Worries about the cost of health care have grown in the public's consciousness over the past two years and now rival their concerns about the economy, an Associated Press poll found.þþConcerns about the overall economy have dropped during the past year, mostly in the last months of the year, according to the poll conducted for the AP by Ipsos-Public Affairs. Unemployment has edged up slightly as one of the nation's most important problems over the last year.þþAs domestic concerns shift, worries about terrorism continue to loom large, as they have for more than two years, according to the poll.þþThe poll offers a glimpse of Americans' leading concerns at a time when Democrats are starting to choose a presidential nominee with Monday's Iowa caucuses and President Bush will be spelling out his election-year agenda in the State of the Union address Tuesday.þþHealth care costs were mentioned by 19 percent in the poll, up from 11 percent a year ago and 5 percent two years ago. Unemployment was mentioned by 14 percent, up slightly from 9 percent a year ago.þþTwice as many women (26 percent) as men (13 percent) cited health care costs as a top problem.þþDiana Bauer, a food service director from Fresno, Calif. said she's convinced doctors sometimes ``demand too much because they know insurance companies will pay it.''þþDemocrats were twice as likely as Republicans to say health care was one of the most important problems. Minorities were twice as likely as whites to say unemployment was a major concern.þþWhen asked an open-ended question, poll respondents must offer an answer that comes to mind, rather than choose from a list of options given to them. They were allowed to offer more than one top problem in their answer.þþThe war in Iraq, a dominant issue in campaign debate this year, was mentioned by 5 percent as one of the most important problems.þþ``I think the major problem is that I'm not sure we have a real exit strategy for the situation in Iraq,'' said David Granger, a 44-year-old public relations worker from Equality, Ala., who said he's less worried about the economy than he was.þþ``Right now it pales compared to what's going on internationally,'' he said.þþImproving signs from the economy recently have lessened worries that it is one of the most important problems. A year ago, 36 percent identified the economy as a top problem, double the 18 percent who gave that answer in the new poll.þþConcerns about other issues affecting people's economic security have been growing.þþOver the last year, Americans' feelings about their economic welfare have been boosted by a third round of tax cuts that took effect during the summer, continued low interest rates that have spurred record home sales and an improving stock market.þþSigns of an improving labor market have been halting. The government reported earlier this month that the unemployment rate dipped to 5.7 percent in December, the lowest level in 14 months. But payrolls rose by only 1,000 jobs in December, a tiny fraction of the 100,000 that analysts had hoped would be created.þþWhen asked to name the most important problems facing the United States, 21 percent cited terrorism as a top concern -- about the same proportion that have done so each quarter in the past year.þþRepublicans were nearly twice as likely as Democrats to mention terrorism as one of the most important problems.þþWhen the poll was taken in early January, the nation was still under a heightened terror alert that has since been lowered.þþNearly one-third called terrorism a top problem in January 2002.þþ``I think the most important problem is containing terrorism,'' said Bonnie Arnold, a 62-year-old paralegal from Walnut Creek, Calif. ``It changes our way of life. I lived with the Cold War all my life, now this has replaced it. It's like a sword hanging over our heads.''þþThe AP-Ipsos poll of 1,000 adults was taken Jan. 5-7 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.þ
Source: NY Times
