Only about half of Americans say that if a vaccine against the new coronavirus becomes available, they would get vaccinated, a new poll shows.
The survey was conducted May 14-18 by the Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Chicago, and it includes responses from 1,056 adults nationwide.
Twenty percent of Americans anticipate that a COVID-19 vaccine will become available to the public before the end of the year, but if it does, only 49 percent say they plan to get it, while 20 percent say they do not plan to get vaccinated. About 31 percent said they are unsure.
Of the 20 percent of Americans who said they will not get the vaccine, most (70 percent) cited concern about its potential side effects. Another 42 percent cited concern about getting infected with the coronavirus from the vaccine.
Among the 49 percent who said they will get vaccinated, wanting to protect themselves (93 percent) and their families (88 percent) were the top reasons for wanting to get vaccinated.