KHN says, presumably without irony, that the reason for the sudden shift is unclear:
Uninsured Americans the people that the Affordable Care Act was designed to most aid are increasingly critical of the law as its key provisions kick in, a poll released Thursday finds.
This months tracking poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 47 percent of the uninsured said they hold unfavorable views of the law while 24 percent said they liked it. These negative views have increased since December, when 43 percent of the uninsured panned the law and 36 percent liked it. (KHN is an editorially independent program of the Foundation.)
The poll did not pinpoint clear reasons for this drop, which comes in the first month that people could start using insurance purchased through the online marketplaces that are at the heart of the law. It did point out that more than half of people without insurance said the law hasnt made a difference to them or their families. In addition, the pollsters noted that almost half of people without coverage were unaware the law includes subsidies to offset premium costs for people of low and moderate incomes.
Among all Americans, the sentiment was also negative, with 50 percent holding unfavorable views of the law and 34 percent supporting it. Views on the law have not been even since the end of 2012. Despite this, just 38 percent of the public wants the law to be repealed.
http://capsules.kaiserhealthnews.org/index.php/2014/01/health-law-is-a-tough-sell-to-uninsured
This tells me 47% didn't even look it up, a household of 7 making a total of $50,000 a year will pay $900 a year total for a silver insurance plan.
Your tax penalty (shared responsibility fee) for not having insurance is paid on your taxes at the end of the year. If your taxable income is below 133% of the FPL you are exempt from this tax.
2014 = $95 per person per year or 1% of your Income
2015 = $325 per person per year or 2% of your Income
2016 = $695 per person per year or 2.5% of your Income
2017 = Tax Penalty will increase by the rate of inflation going forward, or 2.5% of your Income
The penalty is based on modified adjusted gross income.
The total penalty for the taxable year cannot exceed the national average of the annual premiums of a bronze-level health insurance plan offered through the health insurance marketplaces.
The maximum penalty per family is capped at no more than 300% of the minimum penalty (e.g. $695 x 300% = $2,085)
Why not just pay the small amount it takes to get insurance? It will be cheaper to have it, than to pay the tax. You pay a small % and the government pays the rest..
http://kff.org/interactive/subsidy-calculator/