Poll: what threats do Americans see from the coronavirus

As coronavirus infections in the United States increase, authorities are trying to deal with the crisis. 70% of Americans believe that the outbreak of COVID-19 is a serious threat to the country's economy, while 47% say it is a serious threat to the health of the population as a whole. The Pew Research Center conducted a survey to find out what Americans are most afraid of in this situation, writes People press.

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Until recently, Americans had little concern about how coronavirus would affect their health and finances. But with its distribution in the United States, 27% said that coronavirus poses a serious threat to their personal health, 51% consider it a small threat to them personally, and only 22% say that it does not threaten their health.

At the same time, the number of Americans who believe that the outbreak of COVID-19 poses a serious threat to the economy and other aspects of life has recently increased significantly.

In addition, many noted his threat to the public health system, and their concern in this regard is growing. For example, in surveys conducted on March 10-11, 42% of the population said coronavirus posed a serious threat to the health of the US population; but already in polls conducted on March 14-16, 55% of respondents expressed this point of view.

A national survey conducted by the Pew Research Center among 8 people showed a fairly high level of trust among employees of health authorities and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). According to the respondents, state and local authorities are taking the right measures in connection with the outbreak of coronavirus.

The actions of President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in connection with the crisis are considered less than half satisfactory: Trump (45%) and Pence (48%).

Here are the other main results of the new poll:

Media response to an outbreak of coronavirus

Americans are closely following the news about the outbreak of coronavirus and give the news media quite high ratings for reporting the situation: 70% say that the media cover this topic very well. But there is also misinformation: 48% of Americans reported having seen at least a few news stories with far-fetched facts about the virus.

COVID-19 Outbreak Response Depends on Political Opinions

Public views on most national issues do not always coincide, and an outbreak of coronavirus is no exception. The most striking example of this: 59% of Democrats say that the outbreak is a serious threat to the health of the US population as a whole, and only 33% of Republicans are inclined to this opinion.

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Trump is accused of underestimating the risks of the virus, the media - and exaggerating

52% of respondents believe that Trump did not take the risks of an outbreak of coronavirus seriously enough, while 10% say that he exaggerated the risks. Most adults (62%) believe that the media exaggerated the risks of an outbreak.

Coronavirus financial loss

Among those who currently work, only 36% say they will continue to be paid if they cannot work for two or more weeks due to coronavirus. Another 21% say that they could still cover basic expenses, even if they were not paid during the crisis. A third of Americans fear that they will not be paid, and that because of this it will be difficult for them to cover expenses. Among adults with a family income of less than $ 50, about half (000%) say that it will be difficult for them to pay even daily expenses.

Coronavirus: Overestimated or Underestimated

Most (63%) say public health officials at the CDC rated the risks from coronavirus relatively correctly. Few people believe that they exaggerated the risks (21%) or did not take them seriously enough (15%).

62% say the media exaggerated the risks of an outbreak of coronavirus. Only 30% said they responded appropriately to the risks, and 8% said the media did not take the risks seriously enough.

Criticism of Trump's reaction goes in the opposite direction. About half (52%) say that Trump was not serious enough about the risks of the virus (23%) or did not take them seriously at all (29%); 37% believe that he rated the risks adequately.

When it comes to democratic leaders in Congress, about the same number of people think that they have exaggerated the risks (40%) and evaluated them correctly (38%); 19% say they have not taken the risks seriously enough.

Nevertheless, the sympathies of both major parties agree that CDC officials responded correctly to the outbreak: 64% of Democrats, as well as 63% of Republicans, believe that CDC officials rated the risks from coronavirus adequately.

About three quarters of Republicans (76%) say that the media exaggerate the risks of coronavirus, including 53% say that they greatly exaggerated. Although Democrats are less likely than Republicans to say this, many of them also criticize the news media in this regard: 49% of Democrats believe that the media exaggerate the risks of coronavirus, compared with 41% who believe that the media rated the risks correctly.

Democrats and Republicans are very far from evaluating Trump's response to coronavirus. Nearly eight out of ten Democrats (79%) believe that the president was not serious enough about these risks, including 50% who said he did not take the risks seriously at all. Among Republican supporters, 68% believe that he correctly understood the risks, 22% say that the president did not take the risks seriously enough.

The perception of the threat of coronavirus increased during the study period

Information on the coronavirus outbreak and recommendations from federal, state, and local officials gained momentum during the seven-day study period, and public concern about the threat posed by the virus increased by the end of the study.

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For example, in the first two days of the study period (March 10–11), 42% said that a new outbreak of coronavirus poses a serious threat to US public health. In the last three days of the study, their share increased to 55%.

Bipartisan Confidence in CDC, State and Local Officials

Republicans are far more confident in Trump and Pence than Democrats, but most supporters of both parties believe that health and CDC officials and their state and local officials will be able to handle this difficult task.

Most Republicans (87%) say they are either very (48%) or somewhat (39%) confident that public health and CDC officials are good at responding to coronavirus. Most Democrats (80%) also say that they are confident in CDC officials, 33% express full confidence.

Similarly, 75% of Republicans and 72% of Democrats say they are at least somewhat certain that local officials respond well to a coronavirus outbreak.

Republicans are generally convinced that Trump and Pence are doing a good job responding to coronavirus, while most Democrats are of the opposite opinion.

About eight out of ten Republicans (82%) say they are confident that Trump will be able to cope well with the coronavirus crisis; almost as much (77%) say the same thing about Pence. In contrast, 87% of Democrats say the opposite about Trump’s actions. 30% are not too confident in Pence, and 47% are not sure of the correctness of his actions in general.

Republicans, less than Democrats, see “major” threats from coronavirus

Democrats more often than Republicans call coronavirus a serious threat.

In particular, 26 percent more Democrats than Republicans say the virus poses a serious threat to the US population as a whole (59% versus 33%).

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Although most supporters of both parties say the outbreak of coronavirus poses a serious threat to the US economy, Democrats (77%) more often than Republicans (62%) support this view.

Democrats are also more likely than Republicans to say that coronavirus poses a serious threat to the daily life of society, the financial situation and personal health of Americans.

How long-term lack of work will affect workers

Lack of work for a long period of time due to coronavirus will cause great damage to low-income workers.

Overall, just over half of the busy respondents (54%) say they will not be paid if the coronavirus causes them to miss work. Most of this group (33% of all employed) says that it will be difficult for them to cover their basic expenses without having a job and not receiving a salary.

Slightly more than a third of the survey participants (36%) say that they will still be paid if they cannot work because of the coronavirus; 10% say they are not sure how the salary issue will be resolved.

Almost seven out of ten workers with a family income of less than $ 30 a year (000%) say they will not be paid if they have to miss work within two weeks because of coronavirus, including 68% who said they would have problems with expenses during this time.

Racial and ethnic differences in health problems due to coronavirus

Most Americans view the coronavirus as a threat to their personal health. 51% consider it a minor threat, 27% consider it a serious threat; 22% say it is not a threat.

The level of personal preoccupation with the virus varies greatly by population group. In particular, older people, blacks and Hispanics, as well as people with no education, are especially inclined to consider coronavirus as a serious threat to their health.

Most members of all races and ethnic groups see the new coronavirus as at least a minor threat to their health. However, 46% of blacks and 39% of Hispanics consider coronavirus a serious threat to their health, compared with 21% of whites.

Among adults 65 years of age and older, 86% say that coronavirus is a threat to their personal health, including 33% consider it to be a serious threat.

Those who live in urban areas are more likely to see coronavirus as a serious threat to their personal health (33%) than those who live in suburban (25%) or rural (25%) areas.

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There are no major differences in personal health concerns between those who have health insurance and those who do not.

Readers of “coronavirus” news more often see a threat

About half of adults in the United States (51%) say that they follow news about the coronavirus very closely, while 38% say that they constantly monitor it, and only 11% say that they do not follow the news at all.

Those who closely follow the news about coronavirus are convinced that the virus poses a serious threat in all five problem areas.

For example, 78% of those who closely monitor the news say that the outbreak of coronavirus is a serious threat to the US economy, compared with 65% of those who regularly monitor the news, while only the same opinion 46% of the relatively small proportion of the population who are not interested in news at all.

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