A new poll indicates Americans have become more willing to take the coronavirus vaccine since Pfizer’s and Moderna’s candidates were authorized for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration.
Forty-six percent of respondents said in the USA Today-Suffolk University survey they intend to take the vaccine at the earliest available opportunity, up 20 percentage points from a similar poll in late October. The new survey also found 32 percent of respondents are willing to wait for others to get the shot first.
Despite the increased share of respondents willing to take the vaccine, pollsters found 20 percent unwilling to take it at any time, a finding unchanged from October.
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The survey released Wednesday found a wide gap between Democratic and Republican willingness to take the vaccine as early as possible, with 67 percent of Democrats polled saying they would compared to 35 percent of Republicans. Republican respondents willing to take it as soon as possible were statistically tied with the 36 percent who said they would never take it.
Two-thirds of all respondents unwilling to take the vaccine said they have concerns about its safety, while 14 percent said they do not take vaccines in general and 8 percent said they do not consider the coronavirus pandemic enough of a threat to take it.
Political figures on both sides of the aisle have sought to boost confidence in the vaccine by publicly receiving it, including Vice President Pence and President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenTrump administration advances bomb sale to Saudis Klobuchar: Trump ‘trying to burn this country down on his way out’ OVERNIGHT ENERGY: EPA declines to tighten air quality standard for smog | Green groups sue over Trump bid to open Alaska’s Tongass forest to logging MORE. However, the new survey found more than 40 percent of respondents said the person whose advice they trust most on the vaccine is their own doctor, and 30 percent named Anthony FauciAnthony FauciDC mayor honoring Fauci on 80th birthday with ‘Dr. Anthony S. Fauci Day’ Republican club whose maskless conga line went viral responds: Adults have the right to make their own decisions Poll: Americans increasingly likely to get COVID-19 vaccine MORE, the nation’s top infectious diseases expert. Fauci received the vaccine earlier this week.
The survey also found a slight majority of Americans polled, 52 percent, approve of Biden’s approach to handling the virus, compared to 30 percent who disapprove and 18 percent who were unsure.
Researchers surveyed 1,000 adults from Dec. 16-20. The poll has a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.