Nearly half of unvaccinated Americans say they'll definitely not get a vaccine, new poll finds

  • More than half of all Americans have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

  • Of those who haven't, nearly half said they would definitely not get a vaccine, a new poll found.

  • Fewer than a quarter of unvaccinated Americans said they're probably or definitely getting a shot.

  • See more stories on Insider's business page.

The US has vaccinated more than half of all Americans against COVID-19 and two-thirds of those 18 and older, the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed.

Among those who have not yet gotten a dose, 46% said they "will definitely not get a vaccine," while 29% said they probably will not, a poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found.

The survey was designed to be representative of the US population, and those most hesitant to get vaccinated were young adults, Americans without a college degree, white evangelicals, rural Americans, and Republicans.

Just 7% of unvaccinated Americans said they definitely would get a vaccine, and 15% said they probably would, for a combined total of fewer than one in four unvaccinated Americans likely to get a shot.

Meanwhile, mask-wearing has fallen dramatically since February when two-thirds of Americans reported always wearing a mask when they were around others outside their households. As of mid-June, 37% always wear masks and another 19% often do.

"I think with masks being worn and people getting vaccinated, I think we could have opened a little earlier," Aaron Siever told the AP. "We started focusing on the politics of reopening, rather than the health."

More than three-quarters of those who frequently went to restaurants or bars before the pandemic said they planned to do so in the next few weeks, up from about half a year ago.

"I felt a little bit nervous just because being around people is such a surreal thing after so long," Andrea Moran told the AP. "I was really excited and I was thrilled for my kids that they were able to get out and get back to some semblance of normality."

About a third of the Americans surveyed said that restrictions in their area had been lifted too quickly, while about a quarter said it was not fast enough. The rest said the pace was about right.

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