Marylanders support ending tax breaks for pharmaceutical companies on the ads they run, more funding for healthcare workers and state intervention to lower healthcare costs, according to a new poll conducted by OpinionWorks.

About two thirds of Marylanders are opposed to the Trump Administration’s attempt to put more regulations on Medicaid, which could push about one hundred and thirty thousand residents off the rolls.

The poll showed large support for government healthcare plans, 85% of residents said Medicaid is important to their community and 88% said Maryland should help control healthcare costs to ensure people have access to the coverage they need.

“Maryland voters strongly back efforts to protect health insurance programs for residents,” said Steve Raabe, president of OpinionWorks.

The poll also found overwhelming support for a bill that would get rid of tax breaks for drug ads tun by pharmaceutical companies, 73% of Marylanders supported the idea.

“There is no need for the state to subsidize Big Pharma’s exorbitant spending on direct-to-consumer drug advertisements,” said Vincent DeMarco, president of Maryland Healthcare for All! “Ending this unnecessary tax break will generate at least $23 million a year, which will help Maryland keep more people insured. This bill puts care over commercials.”

Any revenue Maryland gets from the change in taxes status would go to paying for Medicaid in Maryland and for the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange, the state’s public health insurance marketplace.

The U.S. is only one of two countries in the world that allow direct-to-consumer drug ads, the other is New Zealand.

“Pharmaceutical manufacturers spent an estimated $14 billion on these ads in 2023 and these costs inevitably get passed down to businesses, governments and of course, consumers who are struggling to pay for their prescriptions,” said Del. Natalie Ziegler, (D-Howard County), a sponsor of the bill. “We all pay for these ads in the form of higher drug prices and overall higher health care costs.”

If passed, the bill would go into effect in July.