Report: One in Ten Americans Know Someone Who Has Died from the Coronavirus

The May 2020 Daily Kos/Civiqs Poll asked 1,546 adults in the United States about the personal and financial impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, their views of the government’s response at the national and state levels, and the 2020 presidential election.

Overview

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues into May, one in ten Americans (10%) now know someone who has died from the coronavirus. African-Americans (17%) and Hispanic and Latino Americans (17%) are twice as likely to know someone who has died from the coronavirus than white Americans (8%).

An additional 21% of Americans either know someone who has the virus or have contracted it themselves. In total, as of May 5, 2020, nearly one in three Americans (31%) know someone who has been afflicted with or passed away from the coronavirus.

Coronavirus-related job losses continue to mount. In the past month, 12% of Americans have filed for unemployment, up from 8% in the last Civiqs poll on April 14, 2020. Another 4% of Americans have attempted to file for unemployment but have not been successful. One in four households (26%) report that they have been affected by layoffs, furloughs, or lost hours.

In the race for president, Democrat Joe Biden leads President Donald Trump by three percentage points, 47%-44%. A majority (54%) of Americans disapprove of the way Donald Trump is handling the response to the coronavirus.

Please visit civiqs.com for additional daily updates on Americans’ level of concern about the coronavirus epidemic, and views of the response to the coronavirus outbreak by the U.S. government and state and local governments.

Health Concerns and Daily Life

Most Americans remain worried about the coronavirus outbreak. However, the level of concern has steadily declined from its peak at the end of March. Currently, 63% of Americans are extremely or moderately concerned about the coronavirus reaching their local area, down from 72% three weeks ago and 77% in late March. Slightly more than half (53%) are extremely or somewhat worried about getting sick with the coronavirus; a decrease from 55% in mid-April and 60% in March.

Sadly, 10% of American adults now know someone who has died from the coronavirus. There are stark divisions among racial and geographic lines. Nearly one in five African-Americans (17%) and Hispanic/Latino Americans (17%) know someone who has died, compared to 8% among white Americans. In urban areas, 12% report knowing someone who died -- twice the rate of rural areas (6%). In the Northeastern states, where the coronavirus outbreak has been the most severe, 16% know someone who has died. Combining these factors, 16% of Democrats know someone who has died from the coronavirus, versus 8% of Independents and 6% of Republicans.

With states beginning to roll back their stay-at-home orders, the number of Americans sheltering in place has fallen: 57% now report that they only leave their house for essential activities, compared to 67% in March and April. The majority of Americans are taking precautions when they leave the house: nearly half (44%) wear a face mask whenever they leave the house, and another third (37%) wear a mask occasionally, depending on their activity.

Americans’ confidence in coronavirus testing has grown, though it is still not high. Whereas only 33% of Americans were very or moderately confident that they could get tested in April, 41% now believe they could get a test if wanted.

Economic Impacts

Jobless claims due to the pandemic topped 30 million Americans by the end of April. Civiqs’ survey results reaffirm these statistics, and indicate that -- consistent with reports of unemployment filing failures and overtaxed systems -- the actual number of people who have lost their jobs may be much greater.

Among all adults, 12% reported filing for unemployment over the past month; an increase from 8% in Civiqs’ April survey. In addition, another 4% -- approximately ten million Americans -- have attempted to file in the past month and not been successful.

One in four households (26%), and 14% of individuals, have been affected by layoffs, furloughs, or lost hours. As a proportion of those employed before the outbreak, one in five American adults have now been laid off or furloughed from their jobs as a consequence of the coronavirus outbreak. Two in five households have seen their household income reduced by a little (23%) or a lot (17%) since the outbreak began.

Government Response

Americans remain generally satisfied with their states’ responses to the pandemic and dissatisfied with the federal government response. However, satisfaction with state governments has decreased from 70% in April to 60% in May. Republicans, in particular, are more prone to be not very satisfied, or not satisfied at all with their local governments: 44% now, versus 30% three weeks ago.

Over half of Americans remain dissatisfied with the U.S. government’s response to the pandemic. This dissatisfaction is gradually spreading, from 52% in March to 56% in April to 59% today. Similarly, 54% of Americans disapprove of the way Donald Trump is handling the response to the coronavirus.

There is declining support for a national quarantine in which only essential travel, such as trips to the grocery store and pharmacy, are permitted to control the spread of the coronavirus. Just over half (53%) of Americans support such a quarantine today, from 59% three weeks ago, and 69% in late March. Supporters are predominantly Democrats: 83% of Democrats, but only 25% of Republicans are currently in favor of a national quarantine.

Although protests of states’ stay-at-home orders have dominated recent news reports, the protests are not representative of the beliefs of most Americans. Two-thirds of Americans (65%), including 35% of Republicans, support their state ordering everyone to stay at home. A majority (59%) oppose the stay-at-home protests themselves.

Partisan polarization continues to grow over the veracity of the official count of deaths caused by the coronavirus in the United States. Over half of Republicans (59%) and nearly two-thirds of frequent Fox News viewers (61%) believe that the official number of coronavirus deaths is overstated; this has increased from 45% of both groups in April. On the Democratic side, 77% believe that the more Americans have died than indicated by the official number; an increase from 68% in April. Only 8% of Americans believe that the official death count is accurate.

2020 Presidential Election

In a presidential election matchup between Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump, Biden currently leads Trump among U.S. adults, 47% to 44%. Neither candidate is viewed favorably by a majority of Americans. President Trump’s favorable rating is 43%; Biden’s is 34%, with 10% unsure. Among the 14% of Americans who have an unfavorable opinion of both Trump and Biden, 40% would vote for Biden, 7% would vote for Trump, and 53% say they would vote for a different candidate, or are unsure.

Civiqs surveyed 1,546 adults in the United States from May 2-5, 2020. The survey was conducted online, among selected members of the Civiqs research panel. Sampled individuals were emailed by Civiqs and responded using a personalized link to the survey at civiqs.com. The survey results are weighted by age, race, gender, education, party identification, and region to be representative of the population of adults in the United States. The general design effect due to weighting is 1.04. The survey has a margin of error of ±2.5% at the 95% confidence level, accounting for the design effect.