Poll: Doctors trusted in healthcare reform

PRINCETON, N.J., June 17 (UPI) -- Americans most trust their doctors over the other players in the debate on U.S. healthcare reform, a Gallup Poll indicated Wednesday.

When asked whom they trust to recommend the right thing over reforming the country's health system, 73 percent said they trusted doctors. Sixty-two percent also said they trusted university professors or researchers who study healthcare policy while 61 percent indicated they trusted hospitals to recommend the right reform choices.

U.S. President Barack Obama had the trust of 58 percent of the poll respondents, faring better than Democratic congressional leaders (42 percent) and Republican leaders (34 percent). Some 40 percent of Americans say they trust pharmaceutical companies to have the right healthcare prescription, while 35 percent said they trusted health insurance companies.

The Gallup pollsters said the results suggest doctors, hospitals and university researchers are well-positioned to have bipartisan clout with the public in the healthcare reform debate even though they are not seen as having wide political clout.

The survey included interviews with 1,009 adults last Saturday and Sunday. It carried a maximum margin of error of 3 percentage points.