Fewer Americans say COVID-19 situation is improving: Gallup

Fewer Americans believe that the COVID-19 situation in the country is improving, according to a new Gallup poll. 

The poll, published on Wednesday, found that 41 percent of respondents said that the COVID-19 situation is getting better in the U.S., down 22 points from a similar poll published in April and May. 

Thirty percent of respondents said that the nation’s COVID-19 situation is getting worse, while 29 percent of those surveyed said it is staying the same, according to the poll. 

The shift was particularly notable among Democratic respondents.

In Gallup’s polling in April and May, 56 percent of Democrats said they thought the situation was improving, compared to just 29 percent in the new poll. While just 23 percent thought the situation was getting worse in the spring poll, now 44 percent think it is getting worse.

Fifty-eight percent of Republican respondents believe that the country’s COVID-19 situation has gotten better, while 41 percent of independent respondents believe the same sentiment, the poll said. 

Overall, 35 percent of respondents said they are very or somewhat worried that they will be infected with the virus. 

The U.S. is averaging more than 100,000 new cases of COVID-19 a day. Much of the population has been vaccinated, but administration officials have pressed for people over 50 to get a second booster shot for added protection.

Officials in recent weeks have also suggested wearing masks in crowded indoor settings.

Much of the public, however, has moved past the era of COVID-19 restrictions.

Twenty-four percent of respondents in the Gallup poll said that their lives are back to the way they were before the pandemic, while 55 percent of those surveyed said their lives are somewhat back to normal and 21 percent of respondents said their lives are not yet back to normal. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 67 percent of Americans are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

The latest Gallup poll was conducted from July 26 to Aug. 2.