Concerns about the spread of the coronavirus have dropped to the level they were at the start of the U.S. response to the global pandemic in March, according to a poll released Monday.
A Monmouth University survey found that 70% of adults in the United States are concerned about a family member getting sick, which is down from 83% in April after climbing from 70% in March.
“Concern about COVID seems to have returned to where it was in the early days of the public response to the pandemic in this country,” said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute.
Although fewer people are worried about a relative getting the virus, more people reported this month than in April knowing someone who had tested positive. In April, 26% of respondents knew someone with the virus, compared to 40% in May.
While fewer people are worried about the spread of the virus, respondents were evenly split on whether the government will be able to control the spread as more than 40 states begin reopening their economies. Fifty percent are confident the country will be able to limit its spread in the coming weeks, while 50% are not confident.
The telephone poll was conducted April 30 to May 4 with 808 U.S. adults and had a 3.5 percentage point margin of error.
