Senator Barack Obama (D) plans to unveil his plan for providing universal health insurance on Tuesday. The issue is politically important, especially for Democrats. It is also potentially challenging. Obama has indicated that his plan would provide insurance for all Americans by the end of his first term in office.

Obama’s plan calls for the increased coverage to be paid for chiefly by employers and through tax increases on wealthy Americans. Most Americans are open to such ideas. A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 55% favor the idea of requiring companies to provide health insurance and 57% favor taxing wealthier Americans to provide coverage for those without insurance. Former North Carolina Senator John Edwards (D) has recently advocated these latter concepts as part of his 2008 campaign.

Earlier Rasmussen Reports surveys found that 66% of voters believe problems with the nation’s system of health insurance are Very Serious. Another 24% say they are Somewhat Serious.

Just 33% give the U.S. health care system good or excellent ratings. Another 31% say our national health care system is just fair while 34% say poor.

While having concerns about the system, voters overwhelmingly trust Democrats more than Republicans to address the health care issue.

Fifty-seven percent (57%) of voters trust Democrats more on health care while just 30% prefer the GOP. That’s the biggest advantage the Democrats enjoy on any issue.

Still, while there is a desire for improvement, identifying the right solution is a bigger challenge. Just 33% of Americans favor a national health insurance program, There is also a significant partisan divide. Republicans oppose national health insurance by a 52% to 21% margin. Democrats tend to favor it (44% to 31%). Those not affiliated with either major party are slightly opposed to national health insurance (43% to 34%).

While most support the idea of mandating corporate coverage, most small business owners believe that approach would have a harmful impact on their business. Ninety percent (90%) of adults assume that the higher cost would be passed on to consumers (another survey found that Americans underestimate how much it costs a company to provide health coverage

Another approach, totally outside the realm of politics and government, was debated earlier in the year when Walmart announced a program to greatly reduce the cost of prescription medication purchased from their pharmacies. Forty-eight percent (48%) believe that Wal-Mart has the power to reduce the cost of prescription drugs across the country.

A Rasmussen Reports survey of 1,000 adults found that just 22% disagree while 30% are not sure.

Rasmussen Reports conducts ongoing surveys measuring the attitudes of Americans on the news of the day. Recent surveys have asked about immigration, Memorial Day, and the Supreme Court decision on partial-birth abortion. The latest updates can be found on the Rasmussen Reports home page.

Rasmussen Reports also continuously updates favorability ratings and general election match-ups for all Democratic and Republican Presidential candidates along with ratings for Members of Congress, Other Political Figures, and Journalists. The President’s Job Approval ratings are updated daily. Rasmussen Reports regularly tracks public attitudes towards Congress, the War on Terror, and other topics.