Majority of Americans remain patient about COVID-19 restrictions as optimism brews, poll finds
Optimism is becoming the norm in the United States, as 64 percent of Americans believe the country is currently doing a good job of containing the coronavirus, a new CBS News/YouGov poll found. That figure serves as an outlier; since the pandemic began, polls have generally suggested only a minority were satisfied with the containment efforts. Just a month ago, for instance, the figure was 45 percent.
NEW FROM @CBSNewsPoll: Confidence about containing the coronavirus is hitting new highs as more vaccines roll out, and Americans say they're also "grateful" and widely optimistic about the coming months. https://t.co/LNN4iLetkp pic.twitter.com/wqX31fk4fm
— Ed O'Keefe (@edokeefe) March 14, 2021
The boost was likely fortified not only by the falling infection rate, but also the sense that the vaccination drive is moving quickly and the expectation that the American Rescue Plan will provide economic relief. There's still a lot of caution though. A majority of Americans are hesitant to gather with their friends, go to the movies, or travel on a plane, and 64 percent of respondents said they'll remain "patient" with governments when it comes to removing coronavirus restrictions.
But what are Americans willing to do *right now* as the end of the pandemic grows closer? There’s still plenty of hesitancy: pic.twitter.com/NJfnE38p3C
— Ed O'Keefe (@edokeefe) March 14, 2021
The CBS News/YouGov poll was conducted between March 10-13 using a representative sample of 2,382 U.S. residents. The margin of error is 2.2 percentage points. Read the full results here.
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