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Page 8A NATION/WORLD East Oregonian Thursday, January 19, 2017 Poll: Americans want health care fix AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite Environmental Protection Agency Administra- tor-designate, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednes- day at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. In break with Trump, EPA pick says climate change isn’t hoax WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump’s choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday that climate change is real, breaking with both the president-elect and his own past statements. In response to questions from Democrats during his Senate confirmation hearing, Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt said he disagreed with Trump’s earlier claims that global warming is a hoax created by the Chinese to harm the economic competitiveness of the United States. “I do not believe climate change is a hoax,” Pruitt said. The 48-year-old Repub- lican has previously cast doubt on the extensive body of scientific evidence showing that the planet is warming and man-made carbon emissions are to blame. In a 2016 opinion article, Pruitt suggested that the debate over global warming “is far from settled” and he claimed that “scientists continue to disagree about the degree and extent of global warming and its connection to the actions of mankind.” At the hearing before the Senate Energy and Public Works Committee, Pruitt conceded that human activity contributes “in some manner” to climate change. He continued, however, to question whether the burning of fossil fuels is the primary reason, and refused to say whether sea levels are rising. Pruitt’s testimony came shortly after NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra- tion issued a joint statement affirming that 2016 was officially the hottest year in recorded history. Studies show the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have decreased in mass, while the world’s oceans have risen on average nearly 7 inches in the last century. In his current post, Pruitt joined a multistate lawsuit opposing the Obama administration’s plan to limit planet-warming carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants. Pruitt also sued over the EPA’s recent expansion of water bodies regulated under the Clean Water Act. WASHINGTON (AP) — Sylvia Douglas twice voted for President Barack Obama and last year cast a ballot for Democrat Hillary Clinton. But when it comes to “Obamacare,” she now sounds like President-elect Donald Trump. This makes her chuckle amid the serious choices she faces every month between groceries, electricity and paying a health insurance bill that has jumped by nearly $400. “It’s a universal thing, nobody likes it,” Douglas, a licensed practical nurse in Huntsville, Alabama, said of Obama’s signature law. “They need to fix it with whatever works, but not make more of a mess like they have now.” That Americans agree on much of anything is remarkable after a presidential race that ripped open the nation’s economic, political and cultural divisions. But on the brink of the Trump presidency, a new poll finds ample accord across those divisions on the need to do something about health care in the United States. More than 4-in-10 Republicans, Democrats and independents say health care is a top issue facing the country, The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll showed. That’s more than named any other issue in the survey, conducted Dec. 14-19. But there seems to be little agreement on what to do about it. Democrats say they want to fix prob- lems in the current program — among them, rising costs and dwindling compe- tition — but not dismantle it. They warn that the GOP is threatening the coverage gained by 20 million people under the 2010 overhaul. Republicans want to repeal Obama’s signature law but fear the political damage of stranding millions of Amer- icans who secured coverage. Congress’ nonpartisan budget analyst lent weight to that concern Tuesday, estimating that a bill passed in 2016 to only repeal — not replace — the law would result in 18 million more uninsured people and a spike in premiums. Trump says he has a plan, but so far he’s given no details. He told The Washington Post last weekend that his approach would provide “insurance for everybody.” Congressional Republicans say the revamp will offer “universal access” to coverage, not quite the same thing The desire to fix Obamacare stretches across party lines, but some are skeptical it can be done. “It can’t be made to work,” said James Gemind, a 55-year-old restaurant worker from Orlando, Florida. “That’s why both sides have been unanimous in WE ARE Poll: Health care fix a top priority Americans see health care as the most important issue for the government to tackle in 2017, according to an AP-NORC Center poll. Issues Americans would like the government to address: Health care 43% (2017) 31% (2016) Top issues for Democrats: Health care 40% Unemployment/ 29 Jobs 24 Education 27 Environment/ 27 Climate change Unemployment/Jobs 25 Immigration 26 29 Racism 20 Education 24 25 Top issues for Republicans: Health care 47% Environment/ 19 Climate change 18 19 Economy 20 Terrorism 18 34 Racism 14 8 Taxes 14 13 Immigration 40 Unemployment/Jobs 37 Terrorism 27 Government spending/Debt 24 Top issues for Independents: Health care 43 Immigration 29 Unemployment/Jobs 26 Government 13 spending/Debt 12 Education 25 Economy 18 NOTE: Results based on a survey of 1,017 U.S. adults conducted Dec. 14-19, 2016, by NORC at the University of Chicago. Margin of error is ±3.7 percentage points. Respondents named up to five issues. SOURCE: AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research their agreement that it has to be repealed or replaced. Part of it is funding; it just does not exist to insure everybody.” Health care aside, in the poll there was more modest agreement on other national priorities. About a third of Republicans and a quarter of Democrats put unemployment among their top issues. About a fifth named the economy in general as a top priority regardless of party, according to the poll. Most Americans said the government should put a substantial amount of effort toward addressing the public’s priorities, but few expect much will be accomplished in the next year, the survey said. Overall, domestic issues including health care, education, the environment and racism were cited by 86 percent of Americans. But Democrats were more likely to mention the environment, racism and poverty, while Republicans were more likely to cite immigration, terrorism, government spending and taxes. Immigration was named by 40 percent of GOP respondents, compared to 15 percent of Democrats. Trump during the campaign connected immi- gration to national security and vowed to build a wall along the southern U.S. border and make Mexico pay for it — an idea Mexican leaders have not accepted. Trump now says Mexico will pay for it “eventually.” In a turn-around from a year ago, most Republicans now say the country is on the right course, while Democrats have become more pessimistic. Life insurance is an essential part of caring for your family. HIRING! OREGON DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS Your Edward Jones financial advisor can help you find a life insurance policy that best suits your family’s needs. Call today. Edward Jones operates as an insurance producer in California, New Mexico and Massachusetts through the following subsidiaries, respectively: Edward Jones Insurance Agency of California, L.L.C., Edward Jones Insurance Agency of New Mexico, L.L.C., and Edward Jones Insurance Agency of Massachusetts, L.L.C. 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