Americans' confidence in the federal government's ability to handle a potential Ebola outbreak is declining, finds a Gallup poll.
An Oct. 19 poll shows 52 percent of people reported being very or somewhat confident in the federal government's ability to handle Ebola, down from the 61 percent recorded on Oct. 5.
Though less confident in the government's ability to handle an outbreak, the public's concern about contracting Ebola has remained relatively stable, increasing from 22 percent to 24 percent in the same two-week timeframe.
Gallup suggests the fall in confidence stems from the issue becoming politicized. The previous poll indicated 48 percent of Republicans and 74 percent of Democrats were confident in the government's ability to handle Ebola, but that gap widened in the latest poll to 37 percent of Republicans and 71 percent of Democrats indicating confidence.
"It is mainly Republicans who have lost confidence in the government to handle Ebola, suggesting that this health and medical situation — as is the case with so much else in American society today, particularly during election season — has become a politicized issue," according to Gallup.
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