Americans to Trump: Healthcare is the top priority for first 100 days

Enlarge / WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 10: President Barack Obama talks with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House. (credit: Getty | The Washington Post)

Of all the hot-button issues chucked around during the Presidential election, healthcare landed as the top priority of Americans in a post-election Reuters/Ipsos poll released Thursday.

About 21 percent of the 1,782 Americans polled said that healthcare should be the primary focus of President-elect Trump’s first 100 days in office. Jobs came in as the second most pressing issue, selected by 16 percent. Immigration came in third, picked by 14 percent. The online poll, conducted from November 9 to 14, drew from all 50 states and had an accuracy of three percentage points.

Though the poll doesn’t reveal what Americans want changed about the country’s complex healthcare system, it may signal frustration with the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), President Obama’s signature piece of healthcare legislation. Trump vowed during his campaign to quickly repeal and replace the law once in office. But since being elected, Trump has walked back that plan, saying he would consider preserving some Obamacare elements. Namely, he's gone on record as tentatively wanting to prevent health insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions and allowing children to stay on their parents’ plans until the age of 26.