Poll: Americans Going out More, Visiting Relatives amid Coronavirus

An increasing number of Americans are engaging in more activities in the last month alone as the world passed the one-year mark of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic, an Axios/Ipsos survey released Tuesday showed.

The survey, taken March 19-22 among 995 U.S. adults, asked respondents to indicate their habits, asking if they have gone out to eat or visited friends or relatives in the last week.

Forty-five percent of respondents said they have gone out to eat in the last week, reflecting a 12-point jump from the 33 percent who said the same last month. In February, 39 percent said they had visited friends or relatives. That number rose to 48 percent in March.

The survey also asked if “emotional well-being” has improved in the last week. That percentage rose from 11 percent in February to 17 percent in March.

Other highlights, per Ipsos:

• A majority (54%) have visited a non-grocery retail store, the highest number recorded since we started measuring this last May
• Currently, 59% believe returning to their normal, pre-coronavirus life poses a large or moderate risk to their health and well-being, down seven points from one month ago and 11 points from the end of 2020.
• Though there is a clear behavioral shift happening overall, in some cases it is people who have not received the vaccine that are driving this behavior. For example, significantly more unvaccinated people say they’ve visited friends or relatives in the past week (52% vs. 41% of vaccinated Americans). Those who have not been vaccinated are also more likely to say activities outside of the home pose no risk to their health and well-being. On the other hand, vaccinated Americans are more likely to report they social distanced in the past week.

However, the habit of masking up does not appear to be on the decline, even as Americans are beginning to reembrace their old habits. According to the survey, “more than seven in ten Americans report wearing a mask at all times when leaving the house,” and a majority indicated that they will continue to wear masks after receiving a vaccine.

Notably, the number of people expressing hesitancy over getting the vaccine remains steady, with “one in five” indicating that they are “not at all likely” to get it.

Thirty-six percent said they are already vaccinated. March 22 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows over 126 million doses administered in the U.S.