Most Americans (66 percent) are worried about contracting COVID-19 or someone in their family contracting it, a new poll shows.
The poll was conducted March 12-16 by the Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Chicago, and it includes responses from 1,003 adults nationwide.
5 survey findings:
1. Sixty-six percent of Americans said they were extremely, very or somewhat worried about getting infected by the new coronavirus or a family member getting infected, up from 45 percent of Americans who responded to an AP/NORC poll in February.
2. Thirty-three percent said they are not too/not at all worried about COVID-19, down from 55 percent in February.
3. Respondents between the ages of 18 and 29 said they were more concerned about contracting the illness or someone in their family contracting it than older Americans. Forty-three percent of adults within that age group said they were extremely/very worried about getting sick. Among adults older than 60, 21 percent were concerned about contracting the disease.
4. Eighty-eight percent of people said they are washing their hands more frequently in response to the pandemic; 68 percent said they are staying away from large groups; and 59 percent said they are avoiding touching their face.
5. Americans are scaling back their travel plans, with 57 percent of Americans saying they have canceled domestic travel, and 87 percent saying they are canceling international travel..