1 in 5 Americans will still refuse COVID-19 vaccine: poll

By Hannah Sparks September 1, 2021 1:04pm Updated

More Americans than ever are ready and willing to get the COVID-19 jab, according to the latest Axios-Ipsos Coronavirus Index.

Just one in five Americans are refusing vaccination against COVID-19, the pollster said Tuesday, meaning vaccine opposition is waning across the country. The number of those who say they are firmly against the shot has also dropped to its lowest level, at 14%.

Still, social distancing remains a high priority for half of Americans, who say they are staying home as much as possible amid the recent upswing in coronavirus infections.

The results come as the Delta variant surges across the US. Studies have shown that while vaccinated people can become infected with COVID-19, and potentially spread the disease to others, their likelihood of developing severe illness is significantly lower. The US added 160,000 new cases during the past seven days — the highest weekly average since January.

Moderna completes submission for full FDA approval of COVID-19 vaccine

Meanwhile, Americans may also be gaining confidence in the vaccine following the Food and Drug Administration’s recent approval of the Pfizer vaccine, after receiving emergency authorization in 2020 to go forth ahead of more robust research. Many had been reluctant to take the shot until such a time that the FDA could guarantee its efficacy.

The poll also revealed a reluctancy to return to business as usual. Some 60% of Americans believe they’d be at a “large or moderate risk” of coronavirus infection if they were to resume their pre-pandemic lifestyles. They are, however, also eking out of their homes more as 56% reported that they’d gone out to eat or visit another’s home during the past week.

Parents are especially eager to see their children vaccinated as now more than two-thirds, 68%, are planning to get or have already received their shots. Opposition to children’s vaccination dropped to less than 31%.

Meanwhile, a majority of Americans — up to 70% — support the use of masks in public spaces, including schools. And while 80% of Americans are amenable to vaccination, just 57% agree that employers have a right to require them.

Tracking Covid-19 cases in the US

Since January 2020, the disease has spread to each state and nearly every territory

By Sergio Hernandez, Byron Manley, Sean O’Key and Henrik Pettersson, CNN

Last updated: September 1, 2021 at 6:45 p.m. ET

Covid-19 has killed at least 641,937 people and infected about 39.4 million in the United States since last January, according to data by Johns Hopkins University.

Cases and deaths per 100K residents, by county

Values represent the seven-day moving average of daily reported cases per 100,000 residents for the period of Aug. 25–Aug. 31. We show a moving average to account for variations in the data caused by, for example, delays or errors in data reporting.

Updated on September 01/2021

Total cases 39,376,916

Total deaths 641,937

• Source: Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering

On a per capita basis, Tennessee, North Dakota and Rhode Island have reported the most cases while New Jersey and Mississippi are leading the country in deaths.

Reported cases and deaths

The figures below are based on data from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering. These numbers are updated every 15 minutes and may differ from other sources due to reporting times. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow our live coverage.

Location	Cases	…per 100K people	Deaths	…per 100K people
California	4,376,753	11,077	65,968	167
Texas	3,636,878	12,543	57,381	198
Florida	3,223,249	15,007	43,979	205
New York	2,282,836	11,735	54,282	279
Illinois	1,528,120	12,059	26,412	208
Georgia	1,413,284	13,311	22,870	215
Pennsylvania	1,303,699	10,184	28,235	221
Ohio	1,228,002	10,506	20,866	179
North Carolina	1,220,902	11,641	14,529	139
New Jersey	1,094,249	12,320	26,902	303
Michigan	1,065,671	10,671	21,616	216
Tennessee	1,061,228	15,540	13,510	198
Arizona	1,016,663	13,968	18,853	259
Indiana	863,299	12,823	14,520	216
Virginia	769,842	9,019	11,861	139
Missouri	766,873	12,495	11,092	181
Massachusetts	761,906	11,054	18,257	265
South Carolina	740,634	14,385	10,684	208
Wisconsin	736,255	12,645	8,494	146
Alabama	704,420	14,367	12,291	251
Louisiana	692,162	14,889	12,583	271
Minnesota	651,388	11,550	7,910	140
Colorado	615,878	10,695	7,142	124
Kentucky	581,982	13,027	7,776	174
Washington	563,041	7,394	6,574	86
Oklahoma	554,496	14,013	8,001	202
Maryland	498,376	8,244	10,024	166
Utah	466,107	14,539	2,640	82
Arkansas	455,781	15,103	6,969	231
Mississippi	439,661	14,773	8,490	285
Iowa	408,390	12,944	6,307	200
Nevada	392,052	12,728	6,539	212
Kansas	374,102	12,841	5,584	192
Connecticut	373,784	10,484	8,358	234
Oregon	276,287	6,551	3,198	76
Nebraska	244,254	12,627	2,322	120
New Mexico	233,487	11,135	4,529	216
Idaho	221,389	12,388	2,363	132
West Virginia	191,156	10,666	3,106	173
Puerto Rico	170,982	5,354	2,875	90
Rhode Island	162,816	15,369	2,782	263
South Dakota	132,837	15,016	2,071	234
Montana	128,098	11,985	1,803	169
Delaware	120,180	12,342	1,887	194
North Dakota	117,955	15,478	1,593	209
New Hampshire	108,021	7,944	1,420	104
Alaska	89,345	12,213	448	61
Wyoming	76,879	13,283	858	148
Maine	76,290	5,675	934	69
Hawaii	63,949	4,517	601	42
District of Columbia	55,570	7,874	1,161	165
Vermont	28,399	4,551	277	44
Guam	10,740		150
US Virgin Islands	5,924		55
Northern Mariana Islands	243		2
Other	152		3
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• * Includes cases repatriated from the Grand Princess and Diamond Princess cruise ships.
• Last updated: September 1, 2021 at 6:45 p.m. ET
• Source: Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering

Those numbers fail to paint a complete picture, however, since testing scarcity and delays likely left many Covid-19 cases and deaths undiagnosed, especially during the outbreak’s early stages.

In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that as many as one in three people in the United States has been infected, more than three times the official count.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized vaccines from three manufacturers — Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson — for emergency use and a mass vaccination campaign is underway in the United States. While new daily cases have dropped dramatically from the January 2021 peak, the race between vaccines and variants continues, especially in parts of the country that are less vaccinated.