A majority of Americans aren't sure if getting the coronavirus vaccine will be their key to returning to normal life, or for that matter, when or how they'll go back to a pre-pandemic lifestyle or who to trust about making that happen, a new survey shows.
"The vaccines are certainly helpful for some people," pollster Chris Jackson, the senior vice president for Ipsos Public Affairs, commented about the latest installment of the Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index. "For the plurality, no one has any idea about how they’re going to resume their normal lives or navigate through this partial period of the next six to 12 months where some people are vaccinated and others aren’t."
Many Americans remain divided about when they'll resume in-person gatherings with family and friends outside their own homes, according to the survey of 1,030 adults age 18 or older, with a margin of error of plus/minus 3.4 percentage points:
- 28% of overall respondents said they already have returned to their gatherings. Of those, 42% of Republicans said they have resumed activities, compared to 10% of Democrats and 15% among people ages 65 and older.
- 22% said they are waiting to get a COVID vaccine or waiting for their loved ones to get their shots.
- People with a bachelor's degree, by 34%, thought it was important to get everybody vaccinated, followed by seniors, at 29%.
- Getting a shot first was considered least important among people with a high school degree, at 14%.
People are also seeing less risk now when it comes to meeting in person, dining out, or using public transportation, with just 11% of those polled saying they still see a large risk in outdoor sports like skiing, skating, or sledding:
- 66% believe returning to a pre-COVID life is a moderate or large risk. The last time it was at this level was October 2020.
- 58% of people ages 18-29 and 49% of Republicans were the least likely to see COVID as a risk.
- People who have been vaccinated, by 76%, still see coronavirus as a high risk.
The levels of trust though, are coupled with trust in the media continuing to fall. Last April, trust in cable news was 50%, but it dropped in the current survey to 38%.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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