Employers aren’t the only ones with skepticism about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s exchanges. The public is less interested in buying health coverage through the public exchanges during the law’s second enrollment period, with likelihood of consumers buying PPACA plans dropping 19 percentage points from last year, according to a new poll by the Morning Consult.

The new data follows findings out last week from consulting firm Towers Watson that found virtually all of the 349 HR professionals at mid- and-large-sized companies surveyed — 99.5 percent — said there was no way they were going to move all their employees over to a public exchange.

Morning Consult found that exchange interest among voters dropped significantly since last year when the exchanges opened. A little more than one in four (28 percent) last year said they were “not at all likely” to purchase coverage in the exchanges. What do respondents say this year:

Not at all likely - 47 percent;
Not too likely - 13 percent;
Said they might go either way - 16 percent;
Likely to purchase coverage on the exchanges - 9 percent;
“Almost certainly” buy coverage - 6 percent; and
Didn’t know - 9 percent.

Among those who have already purchased insurance on the exchanges, Morning Consult polling found that 43 percent plan to keep their insurance plan, 29 percent plan to shop for a new plan and 25 percent are undecided about what they’ll do.

Decline in interest would be problematic for the administration, carriers and consumers. Little participation would most likely result in increased premiums for consumers across the board.

The exchanges have been under increased pressure as PPACA’s second open enrollment period begins Nov. 15.

The Government Accountability Office in a report detailed continued privacy and security weaknesses on HealthCare.gov despite some strides made by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services within the last year, and confusion and concern by consumers still plague the law.

Last week, the Obama administration announced that PPACA had 7.3 million paying enrollees as of mid-August, down from the 8 million figure they announced at the end of enrollment in April.

Instant Insights /

Fewer consumers to shop on PPACA exchanges [infographic]

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