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Public desire for vaccine increases to 69%, but with partisan divide

05 March 2021
 Dan Ackermann

69% of the public intends to get a COVID vaccine or already has, up significantly from 60% in November, according to a report out Friday from the Pew Research Center.

Yes, but: The issue has become even more partisan, with 56% of Republicans who say they want or have already received a coronavirus vaccine compared to 83% of Democrats.

Why it matters: High rates of vaccine hesitancy among any group threatens collective progress against the pandemic, meaning that it's just as important to reach white Republicans as it is to reach other hesitant groups.

  • The overall 30% who are disinclined to get a COVID vaccine cited concerns such as side effects, a sense the vaccine was rushed and a desire to know more on how the vaccines work.
  • The U.S. racial divide in vaccine intent has shrunk overall since November. 61% of Black Americans now say they plan to get a COVID-19 vaccine or have already received one, up sharply from 42% in November.

The big picture: The public continues to be dissatisfied in how top health and state officials have responded to the pandemic, the report says. But people are more optimistic than ever, however, that President Biden's policies and vaccination efforts will effectively contain the outbreak.

  • 81% continue to view the pandemic as a major threat to the economy, and a growing 77% think vaccinations will benefit the U.S. economy.
  • Support for additional restrictions on public activity has declined — 27% say there should be more restrictions on public activity in their area, down from 44% in November. 41% now say the number of restrictions in their area should stay about the same.
  • 85% of Americans see requirements to wear face masks for travelers as necessary, but far fewer say the same about limiting restaurants to take-out service or closing K-12 schools to in-person learning.

Methodology: The report was based on a survey of 10,121 U.S. adults conducted online between Feb. 16-21. The margin of error for the full sample is plus or minus 1.6 percentage points.

Go deeper:Republicans are least likely to want the coronavirus vaccine

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.