Americans largely remain more concerned about the public health impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic than its negative effect on the U.S. economy, polling showed Wednesday.
Conducted over the weekend by Politico and Morning Consult, the survey of 1,991 registered voters asked respondents various questions about the global outbreak and the nation’s response.
Asked to pick if they are more concerned about the economic or public health impact of the coronavirus, a majority of respondents selected the latter option.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents said they are more concerned about the pandemic’s public health impact, compared to 35% who said the economic impact is more concerning and 7% who had no opinion, according to the results of the survey.
A vast majority of voters also said they are more inclined to believe Americans should continue social distancing to combat the coronavirus in spite of its impact on the economy.
Prompted to pick which is closest to their opinion, 76% of respondents said Americans should social distance for as long as needed to fight the pandemic even if it continues to damage the economy, compared to 14% who said Americans should stop social distancing to stimulate the economy again and risk the pandemic worsening. Ten percent had no opinion, according to the poll.
That preference remained apparent when respondents were broken down by political affiliation. Eighty-seven percent of Democrats and 64% of Republicans polled said their opinion was closer to believing that Americans should continue social distancing rather than stopping.
Asked elsewhere by pollsters to pick which is more important for the government to address, 67% of all respondents said the spread of the coronavirus and 24% answered the economy.
The results of the survey have a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points, according to pollsters.
Public health experts have stressed that Americans should keep a 6-foot distance from one another during the pandemic to keep from spread COVID-19, the highly contagious and potentially deadly respiratory disease caused by the new coronavirus.
Governors of most states have accordingly issued orders instructing residents to stay in their homes and to refrain from conducting activities that are not essential, subjecting the vast majority of Americans to sweeping restrictions and consequently shuttering countless businesses.
Individuals opposed to the restrictions have recently responded by holding protests in several states in defiance of those orders and the advice of public health officials.
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