Exclusive: Doctors speak out on the 2016 presidential election

It’s no secret that the 2016 presidential campaign trail has been a bit, well, bizarre. Between the email scandals on the Democratic side and the internal struggle of the Republican Party, it is hard to keep up with the latest headlines.

So with everything that has been happening within the political arena as of late, Medical Economics wanted to know where our readers stand on the issues and candidates.

We surveyed nearly 53,000 physicians to find out what they think about the election thus far, and received 1,532 responses-a response rate of  3%, which is strong for an online survey.

Read on to find out what your peers really think about Hillary, Bernie, and Trump, and which healthcare issues they say must be addressed.

**Feedback gathered between Feb. 5, 2016, and March 1, 2016, survey sent to Medical Economics readers. Read more of our findings in the April 10th print issue.

I am a registered:

Democrat: 25.6%

Republican: 41.5%

Independent: 29.0%

I am not registered to vote: 2.5%

Another party: 1.4%

If the election were held today, I would vote for:

Hillary Clinton: 19.5%

Donald Trump: 17.1%

Bernie Sanders: 14.1%

Marco Rubio: 12.6%

Ted Cruz: 8.3%

John Kasich: 7.5%

Undecided: 9.2%

Do you feel that healthcare issues have been adequately addressed by the candidates to date?

Yes: 11.4%

No: 88.6%

What one major healthcare issue would you like to see them address?

Reining in government mandates on healthcare: 22.4%

The fate of the Affordable Care Act: 20.9%

Rising healthcare costs: 12.5%

Possible national payer consolidation: 12.4%

Controlling prescription drug prices: 11.8%

Addressing physician pay compensation inequity: 10.9%

Other: 9.3%

What do you think should happen to the Affordable Care Act under the next U.S. President?

It should remain intact: 4.2%

It should continue to evolve with minor amendments: 29.3%

It should be repealed completely: 29.1%

It should be repealed, but only if a replacement plan is in place: 28.0%

Other: 9.4%

If it hasn’t already, would you want your state to expand Medicaid?

Yes: 26.6%

No: 32.2%

My state already expanded the program: 29.8%

Not sure: 11.5%

My specialty is:
Family Medicine: 28.0%

Internal Medicine: 21.3%

Pediatrics: 12.7%

Obstetrics/Gynecology: 8.0%

General Practice: 3.3%

Cardiology: 2.4%

Other: 24.1%