White House plots new Obamacare PR path: Go for the heartstrings

Just because poll numbers show the American public is experiencing a growing dislike for Obamacare, along with a related growing distrust of President Obama – who promised repeatedly that constituents could keep their doctors – doesn’t mean the White House is giving up its hard-sell push of the health care overhaul.

Rather, it’s quite the opposite. And the new White House pitch to the people: Give the public stories with emotional appeal, showing how Obamacare has helped individuals.

At the outset of a 16-day media blitz that ended Thursday to tout Obamacare’s benefits to a skeptical public, the president vowed not to back off his reform.

His exact words, at the launch of the blitz: “If I’ve got to fight another three years to make sure this law works, that’s what we’ll do,” The Hill reported.

And over the course of the last few days – and in the lead-up to the presidential family’s departure on a 17-day vacation to Hawaii – the rebranding of Obamacare has only intensified.

The first lady’s stepped up her public relations push, in a series of radio interviews targeting urban listeners. The White House has sent out various video spots aimed at enticing Americans to spend their Christmases discussing Obamacare.

And the administration enlisted the help of moms, appealing to their emotional sides to short-sell the need for speedy enrollment.

Still, the numbers aren’t looking so good. A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll found 49 percent of Americans still oppose Obamacare.

The White House, in response, vowed another three-months of concerted effort to bolster enrollment numbers – taking a more personal approach, that focuses on stories of those who’ve benefited from the reform.

An unnamed administration official said in The Hill: “We will continue to focus on consumer outreach and enrollment to reach as many Americans as possible about signing up for insurance through the remaining months of open enrollment.”