Vested Interest - Trends - June 1999 Issue

Setbacks for Women’s Health

A Louis Harris and Associates poll of 2,011 women conducted for the Commonwealth Fund Survey of Women’s Health found an increase in the number of women reporting abuse and a decrease in the number reporting health insurance. Nearly four in ten (39%) reported some form of physical abuse as children or adults, including rape, sexual assault, or physical assault. Poorer women were at slightly higher risk, although women of all earnings levels reported attacks. Poorer women were also more likely to report a lack of health insurance. For women under 65 with incomes under $16,000, the uninsured grew from 29% in 1993 to 35% last year. For women under 65 with incomes between $16,000 and $35,000 , the uninsured grew from 15% to 21%. (AP, May 5, 1999)

Skyrocketing Support for Gun Control

ICR, a polling firm, happened to ask 765 adults nationwide about their attitudes toward gun control just 4 days before the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado. They repeated the survey a week after the shootings with 1,006 adults nationwide. They found a statically significant jump in support for gun control. General support for tougher gun laws grew from 55% before to 63% after, while opposition fell from 40% before to 31% after. Before the shootings, a plurality (47%) thought tougher enforcement of existing gun laws would be more effective than new laws (42%); those numbers more than reversed after the shootings: 51% favored new laws, and 39% favored better enforcement. A Pew Center Poll of 1,179 adults nationwide found that Republican women are significantly more supportive of gun law than are Republican men. The poll found that support for gun laws among Republicans has grown from 47% six years ago to 53% today, a shift attributable entirely to women, three-fourths of whom now support gun laws. (AP, May 5, 1999, May 21, 1999)

Public Perceives Racial Bias in Courts

A Hearst Corporation survey of 1,826 adults nationwide for the National Center for State Courts found a high degree of skepticism about the role of race in the courtroom. Black Americans are most likely to agree that “people like them” are discriminated against in court,; 68% agreed. Just 33% of Hispanics thought that they were discriminated against. Overall, 80% thought that disputes were not resolved in a timely manner, and 78% thought that elected judges’ rulings were influenced by the need to raise campaign funds. Over half (53%) thought that the media did a fair job of reporting on the courts. (AP, May 14, 1999)

The Customer is Always Right

A Harris Poll of 1,006 adults nationwide asked about customer satisfaction in several industries. Respondents noted that computer companies are most likely to “do a good job of serving their customers,” at 80% agreement, followed by airlines and hospitals, both at 71%. At the bottom of the list came tobacco companies (31% agreement), managed care companies (34% agreement), and health insurance companies (41%). Asked if they trusted the industry to “do the right thing” if there was a “serious safety problem” with a product, respondents most trust hospitals to “do the right thing”, at 70% agreement, followed by computer hardware companies (69%) and airlines (67%). Least trusted: Tobacco companies (21%), managed care companies (37%), and health insurers and oil companies (both at 47%). (The Polling Report)