President Obama’s speech to Congress Wednesday night has provided at least a short-term boost in support for the health care reform plan that he and congressional Democrats have proposed. But the bounce is partisan in nature, with the increase in support coming entirely from those in the president’s own party.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national tracking survey shows that 46% favor the plan and 51% are opposed. The survey was conducted on Wednesday and Thursday nights. The previous two-day sample, conducted Tuesday and Wednesday nights, found that 44% favored the plan while 53% were opposed.

The Thursday night portion of the current survey is the first based entirely upon interviews conducted following the president’s speech to Congress. That data finds that the number who support and oppose the legislation are essentially even. Rasmussen Reports will be tracking support for the proposals on a daily basis over the next several days and will release new updates each morning at 9 EDT.

Another measure of the speech's impact will be found in the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll. Early indications are that Obama also received a modest personal bounce in his approval ratings.

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Eighty percent (80%) of Democrats now support the health care plan, up from 72% in the previous survey results. Support among Republicans declined two points while support among those not affiliated with either major party rose by a single percentage point. Premium Members can see full demographic crosstabs for results released today, yesterday and, for comparison, in late August.

The speech also increased enthusiasm for the plan. Thirty percent (30%) now Strongly Favor the legislation and 39% are Strongly Opposed. In the previous survey, 27% Strongly Favored the plan and 41% Strongly Opposed. In August, those numbers were 23% and 43% respectively.

From a different perspective, 51% now say that health care reform is at least somewhat likely to pass this year. That’s up from 47%.

If the plan passes, 31% of voters say the quality of care will get better and 46% say it will get worse. In August, the numbers were 23% better and 50% worse.

Forty-seven percent (47%) say passage of the plan will make the cost of health care go up while 23% say it will make costs go down. The previous survey found 52% thought the plan would lead to higher costs, and only 17% thought it would achieve the stated goal of lowering costs.

Other recent polling prior to the president's speech shows that most people with insurance say it’s likely they would be forced to change coverage if the plan passes. Voters overwhelmingly believe that every American should be able to buy the same health insurance plan that Congress has. Most favor limits on jury awards for medical malpractice claims and think that tort reform will significantly reduce the cost of health care.

Rasmussen Reports on Wednesday provided a summary of public opinion on health care reform leading up to the speech.

Nationally televised appearances by the president have typically provided a bounce in the polls that last for a week or two. In all cases but one, the bounce has been positive for the president. Following a nationally televised press conference in August, he received a negative bounce when he commented on an incident involving a black Harvard professor and a white Cambridge policeman. Still, even following that press conference which was intended to promote the health care plan, the president’s appearance temporarily improved support for the reform legislation.

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