POLL: 9 in 10 say pandemic not controlled; two-thirds intend to vaccinate

January 19, 2021January 19, 2021 WKXA

Ridofranz/iStockBy ALLISON DE JONG, ABC News

(NEW YORK) — Nearly 9 in 10 Americans say the coronavirus pandemic is not under control in the United States, but far fewer say they’ll get vaccinated against it, a new ABC News/Washington Post poll finds.

As the country endures record levels of daily COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths, 52% say the virus is “not at all” under control, up sharply from 35% (among registered voters) in October. The view is deeply partisan; 7 in 10 Democrats and 55% of independents say the virus is not at all under control, versus 28% of Republicans.

In terms of vaccination, 63% say they will definitely or probably get the vaccine and 3% say they’ve already done so. The net (65%, due to rounding) is lower than the 71% who said they would get vaccinated in a similar question in late May. The decline is steepest among those who haven’t gone beyond high school (-14 percentage points), Hispanics (-13 points), those ages 18 to 49 (-12 points) and Republicans and conservatives (each -12 points).

[ CLICK HERE TO SEE A PDF WITH THE FULL RESULTS FROM THE POLL ]

In what might ordinarily be seen as simply a public health matter, this poll, produced for ABC News by Langer Research Associates, finds that partisan and ideological differences in intended vaccine uptake remain vast. Eighty-five percent of Democrats and 80% of liberals probably or definitely will get vaccinated or have done so, versus fewer than half of Republicans (46%) and conservatives (48%). And these divisions have widened since last spring.

Concern over catching the virus is strongly linked to intention to get vaccinated. Six in 10 are very or somewhat worried that they or someone in their immediate family might catch it, down from 66% in July and as much as 69% in late March. Among those who are more worried about catching the virus, 79% intend to get vaccinated or have done so, compared with 39% of those who are less worried.

Again, this too, reflects partisan predispositions. Seventy-eight percent of Democrats are very or somewhat worried, versus 63% of independents and just 38% of Republicans.

Beyond those worried about catching it, an additional 1 in 10 now say they or an immediate family member already has caught the virus, up from 5% last summer and just 1% last March.