More than half of Americans believe that unvaccinated people should not be allowed back into the office or use public spaces.
An increasing number of people in the United States want to receive the coronavirus vaccine, and a majority also support restrictions on work, lifestyle and travel for those not inoculated with COVID-19, according to a poll published on Friday.
The national opinion poll conducted by Reuters / Ipsos found that 54 percent of respondents said they were “very interested” in getting vaccinated. This emerged from a January survey, when 41 percent expressed the same level of interest and 38 percent in a May 2020 survey before developing a coronavirus vaccine.
Against the background of a limited amount of vaccination doses, most states now give priority to front-line workers, the elderly and those with basic health conditions.
According to the survey, 55% agreed that unvaccinated people should not train at public gyms, go to cinemas or attend public concerts. [Lucy Nicholson/Reuters]
US President Joe Biden, in an important speech on Thursday, called on US states to make vaccinations open to all adults by May, to pave the way for economic and social life to resume by July 4, US Independence Day.
Interest in the vaccine has increased in the last year among whites and racial minorities, with about six in 10 whites and five in 10 members of minority groups now expressing a high level of interest.
According to the survey, 27% of Americans said they were not interested in getting vaccinated, relatively unchanged from a similar survey in May.
However, anticipating the social challenges that may arise as the US begins to emerge from the one-year pandemic, the latest survey showed that most Americans want to limit the ways in which unvaccinated people can mix in public.
Seventy-two percent of Americans said it was important to know “whether people around me were vaccinated,” according to the survey.
People waving after leaving a Disneyland parking lot that has been turned into a mass vaccination site in Anaheim, California, USA [File: Mario Anzuoni/Reuters]
A majority – 62% – said unvaccinated people should not be able to travel by plane. Fifty-five percent agreed that unvaccinated people should not train in public gyms, enter cinemas or attend public concerts.
When asked about their jobs, 60% of Americans said they wanted to work for an employer “who requires everyone to get vaccinated with coronavirus before returning to work,” and 56% said unvaccinated workers should stay home.
Companies may soon feel increasing pressure to address these concerns. About 18 percent of the US population has already received at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine.
Amesh Adalja, a scientist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said the answers to the survey made sense, given the social restrictions imposed on everyone in the past year.
“People say, ‘If I’m vaccinated, it’ll change my life,'” Adalja said. “And if you are not vaccinated, this is your choice. But you will be in a different status, because you could be the carrier of this virus, so you can spread it to another unvaccinated person. ”