Most Utahns are taking a pragmatic approach to the development of a vaccine for the novel coronavirus. Two-thirds say they believe a vaccine will be available in a year or even longer according to a new survey.
The UtahPolicy.com/KUTV 2News poll from Y2 Analytics finds that 67 percent of Utahns think a vaccine for the coronavirus won’t be developed for at least a year or even longer. 16 percent say they think a vaccine is just a few months away while 6 percent say it won’t be possible to produce a vaccine. Curiously, 1 percent say they think a vaccine is available now, while 10 percent weren’t sure.
Several companies are racing to find a vaccine for the novel coronavirus, rushing into clinical trials. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said earlier this week he anticipates having at least 100 million doses of a vaccine for COVID-19 available by early next year. However, he warned that the vaccines will be mass-produced before officials know if they are effective at providing immunity.
Men in our survey are slightly more optimistic about the timeline for the development of a vaccine than are women. 76 percent of women believe that the vaccine won’t be ready for a year or more, while 60 percent of men think the same. 21 percent of men say a vaccine is just a few months away.
Likewise, Republicans and independent voters are slightly more optimistic about the development of a vaccine for the coronavirus than are Democrats in Utah. For instance, 55 percent of “strong” Republicans” say a vaccine is a year or more away, while 24 percent say it will take a few months to produce. On the other end of the spectrum, 90 percent of “strong” Democrats in Utah believe that the vaccinations will not be available for a year or more, but just 6 percent of that group say it will take just a few months.
We see the same phenomenon in the respondents’ political ideology. Conservative Utahns on the right side of the political spectrum are more idealistic about the development of a vaccine. The further you move to the left, the more they expect it will take longer to produce.
- 46 percent of “strong” conservatives feel the vaccine will take a year or more, and 24 percent think it will be available in a few months.
- 63 percent of “moderate” conservatives say the development of a vaccine will take a year, but 23 percent believe it will only be a few months.
- 75 percent of moderates, and more than 80 percent of liberals say they expect a vaccine to be available in a year or more.
The survey was conducted by Y2 Analytics from May 9-15, 2020 among 1,099 likely Utah voters with a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
