What Is Driving the Decline in People’s Willingness to Take the COVID-19 Vaccine in the United States?

Over the past few months, there has been an indisputable decline in the number of people in the US who say they plan to get the vaccine for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) when one becomes available.A national survey by Pew Research Center in May found that 72% of people in the US said they would get the vaccine if it were available.By September, that number had dropped to 51%.Survey results from CNN showed a similar decline, from 66% who said they would get the vaccine in May to 51% in early October.What is disputable, however, is why this decline is occurring.The COVID-19 pandemic has become highly politicized, with partisanship affecting attitudes toward wearing a mask and confidence in the accuracy and validity of COVID-19 statistics.Similarly, much has been made about