The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) has been tracking public opinion on the U.S. role in global health for the last decade. Now, more than two years into President Trump’s administration, the April 2019 KFF Health Tracking Poll examines whether this period, which has been marked by a changing U.S. stance toward international affairs, has shifted the public’s attitudes on these key issues. Has, for example, the administration’s promotion of an “America first” approach, which has included proposed cuts to U.S. global health programs, affected the public’s support for U.S. engagement to improve the health of those in low and middle-income countries? Here we provide an overview of our latest findings and also look at whether there have been any changes over time.
Consistent with previous KFF polling our latest poll finds broad support (68 percent) for the U.S. playing at least a major role in world affairs (Figure 1), and six in ten (58 percent) believing the U.S. should play a “leading role” or “major role” in improving health for people in developing countries (Figure 2). In the latter case, larger shares of Democrats (70 percent) say they want the U.S. to take at least a major role compared to Republicans (37 percent) or independents (55 percent).