78 percent of unvaccinated Americans unlikely to change their minds: Gallup

More than 3 in 4 Americans who have yet to receive a coronavirus vaccine say it is unlikely they ever will, according to a new poll.

Among U.S. adults who do not plan to be vaccinated, 78 percent said in a Gallup poll released Monday they are unlikely to reconsider their plans. Roughly half — 51 percent — indicated they are “not likely at all” to change their mind and get vaccinated.

Overall, just 1 in 5 vaccine-reluctant adults said they are open to reconsidering, with 2 percent saying they are “very likely” and 19 percent saying they are “somewhat likely” to ever get inoculated.

The same poll found 60 percent of U.S. adults say they have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, meaning two weeks have passed since their final dose, and 24 percent do not plan to be vaccinated.

More than half of all U.S. adults polled, 53 percent, said they are worried about people opting against getting a vaccine, including 25 percent who said they are “very worried” about vaccine hesitancy in America.

Politicians, celebrities, athletes and public health officials have spent the last four months encouraging all Americans to get vaccinated against the coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last month lifted guidance requiring face coverings while indoors and in public for fully vaccinated people.

Several states have also created lottery systems with cash prizes for residents who get vaccinated as a means of inciting people to take the shot.

President Biden has listed the federal government’s mass vaccination effort as one of his top areas of focus during his first 100 days in office.

The U.S. has recorded approximately 33.4 million coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic last year, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, along with almost 578,000 related deaths.

The Gallup poll was based on self-administered web surveys conducted May 18-23 among 3,572 adults. It has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.