From: www.denverpost.com

Nearly 8 in 10 Americans support a federal health insurance plan for those who can't afford or can't get private insurance, but only 37 percent define "public option" correctly, a new national poll found.

The majority of people polled — 86 percent — say insurance should be available to everyone regardless of health history.

It was released in conjunction with an AARP forum at the Tattered Cover Book Store with Charlie Cook, publisher of The Cook Political Report.

Cook told a crowd Tuesday that President Barack Obama's biggest mistake may have been passing off health care reform to Congress, which polls show the Extras Examine the "August 2009 Poll of Americans' Attitudes Toward Health Care Reform." (PDF, 10 pages) public doesn't trust as much as the president.

"I think the proposal is full of caricatures," he said. "It almost doesn't matter what's in it. Perception in politics is important. . . . It's become so badly damaged, it can't float."