According to a new Gallup poll, Americans' outlook of the Covid-19 pandemic has become increasingly pessimistic in recent months, with a growing share believing things are getting worse instead of better.
A group of people walk past a testing site in New York.
The number of people who think the situation in the US is getting better has fallen.
The percentage of people who think it's getting worse has gone from 15% to 30%, while the percentage who think it's staying the same has gone from 21% to 29%.
The majority of Americans think Covid-19 cases will go up in the fall and winter, and only 8% think they will go down.
Only 26% said they are very confident in their ability to protect themselves against Covid-19 when out in public, down from 42% in April and the lowest share recorded since August 2021.
The majority of Americans say their lives are back to normal compared with the pre-pandemic period, but the percentage who say their lives are completely disrupted by Covid-19 has gone up.
Less than a third of respondents are avoiding things like public places and only 45% have worn a mask in public in the last week.
A third of the way done. A majority of respondents think the Covid-19 epidemic is over, while a small number think it is not. In April, 34% of people said the same, which was an all-time high since the beginning of the Pandemic.
Fifty five percent of respondents think that more new coronaviruses will take hold. The number of people who said the same last year has gone down. The proportion of people who were at least moderately confident that existing Covid-19 vaccines could protect against new coronaviruses was down from last year. The vaccines are still effective at preventing severe illness and death despite the fact that they don't provide as strong protection.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are more than 100,000 daily Covid-19 cases in the U.S. The poll's responses on social distancing come as mask mandates across the U.S. and other Covid-19 restrictions have lifted this year even as public health experts criticize that approach. Efforts to reimpose mask mandates in response to rising Covid-19 metrics have failed, with Philadelphia abandoning its mask order in April just days after reinstating it, and Los Angeles backpedaling on a plan to reimpose its mask mandate in July. Americans have been advised by public health experts to remain cautious and try to avoid contracting the coronaviruses, which can be transmitted to people who are more susceptible.
The Americans are less optimistic about the situation.
There is a wave of covid infections, but not deaths.
Live updates on the coronaviruses.
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