Americans aren’t thrilled with the vaccine rollout so far, according to new Harris Poll data shared exclusively with Axios.
Why it matters: The Biden administration will take over right in the midst of one of the most complex and highest-stakes logistical efforts the country has ever seen — and getting it right will be both a political and public-health imperative.
By the numbers: A plurality of Republicans and Independents, and a majority of Democrats, say the rollout is moving too slowly.
- Among those who feel it’s going too slowly, however, there’s a sharp partisan divide over who’s at fault: 60% of Democrats say President Trump is to blame, while a plurality of Republicans (36%) say state governments are the problem.
What’s next: The Harris Poll — like the Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index — found an increasing number of Americans now say they’re likely to get vaccinated.
- 68% said they’re likely to get a vaccine, which wouldn’t be enough to achieve herd immunity, but those numbers could continue to rise.
- Among people who said they weren’t likely to get vaccinated, some of the most common reasons included fear of side effects (55%), concerns about the fast development process (45%) and believing it won’t work (36%).
- As more people get the shots without incident, some of those fears may be allayed.
Methodology: The survey was conducted Jan. 8-10 among a representative sample of 1,951 American adults.