Survey: 97% of vaccinated Americans who've ended friendships during COVID pandemic view ex-pals as 'full-blown anti-vaxxers'



An online survey probing the reasons why people have ended friendships since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic unearthed at least one particularly head-turning data point.

Among vaccinated Americans who've ended friendships since March 2020, almost all of them (97%) view their ex-friends as "full-blown anti-vaxxers" and just couldn't get them to see things their way with regard to the COVID-19 vaccines, OnePoll reported.

Breaking down the numbers

But it isn't as though a vast majority of those who've ended friendships in the last 18 months did so over vaccines — far from it.

The survey of 1,000 Americans conducted Sept. 2 found that only 14% of vaccinated respondents said they axed friends who didn't want to get the needle, OnePoll noted.

The vaccinated respondents who view their ex-friends as "full-blown anti-vaxxers" indicated in the survey that among the reasons their former friends were reluctant to get the shot were "not believing in vaccines to claiming the COVID-19 vaccine doesn't work."

Many unvaccinated respondents said they are worried about the vaccines' potential side effects while others said they're healthy and don't need the vaccine — and still others expressed distrust, OnePoll noted.

In addition, among survey respondents who ended friendships for any reason, a whopping 66% are vaccinated — and only 17% indicated don't plan to get a shot ever, the outlet said.

Political differences

The survey also found that a vast majority of Democratic respondents (81%) are fully vaccinated while somewhat fewer Republicans (64%) can say the same thing. In addition, the survey found that 69% of Independents and 41% of third-party supporters are fully vaccinated.

Only 7% of Democrats who were part of the survey said they haven't been vaccinated yet, followed by 20% of Independents, 23% of Republicans, and 27% of third-party supporters, the survey found.

More from OnePoll:

Surprisingly, many Democrats (41%) feel society is too critical of unvaccinated people, and over half of Republicans (57%) echo that sentiment. However, 12% of Democrats and 5% of Republicans disagree society is harsh on unvaccinated people.

Overall, 61% of vaccinated people feel "very confident" in their decision to get the shot, compared to 33% of people who feel the same about not getting inoculated.

Other reasons for ending friendships

The survey uncovered a number of other reasons why friendships ended during the pandemic apart from disagreements about vaccines:

  • Different political views (16%)
  • Dating or sleeping with an ex (15%)
  • Making up rumors about them (12%)
  • Being liars (7%)

Americans have ended friendships over the COVID-19 vaccineyoutu.be

CDC asks unvaccinated Americans — nearly 80 million of them — to stay home for Labor Day weekend



The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is imploring Americans to stay home and avoid travel during Labor Day weekend if they are unvaccinated.

On Sunday, the CDC reported a seven-day moving average of 129,418 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and noted that more than 93% of counties across the country are seeing widespread community transmission, according to Fox News.

What are the details?

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during a Tuesday White House briefing that unvaccinated Americans should not travel during Labor Day weekend and put themselves — and others — at risk, CNN reported.

As for even fully vaccinated Americans, Walensky said to weigh the risk of traveling during the busy holiday weekend and consider their options.

"First and foremost, if you are unvaccinated, we would recommend not traveling," Walensky said during the White House briefing, adding that while fully vaccinated Americans can travel with "precautions," they still need to consider the possibility that they may become infected with COVID-19 amid the ongoing Delta variant surge.

She continued, "Given where we are with disease transmission right now, we would say that people need to take their own these risks into their own consideration as they think about traveling. If you are unvaccinated, we would recommend not traveling."

Elsewhere in her remarks, Walensky added that those who choose to travel or congregate for Labor Day weekend celebrations ought to spend time outside and mask up while indoors.

"Throughout the pandemic, we have seen that the vast majority of transmission takes place among unvaccinated people in closed indoor settings," Walensky said. "Masks are not forever, but they are for now."

CNN reported that of those Americans eligible for vaccinations — the eligible share of people ages 12 years and older — approximately 38.6% are not yet fully vaccinated.

Vaccinated people far less likely to engage in public activities than unvaccinated Americans: poll



Vaccinated Americans are far less likely to engage in public activities than people who have not yet received the coronavirus vaccine, according to a new Morning Consult poll.

A survey of 879 vaccinated American adults and 1,321 unvaccinated adults found that those who were not inoculated against COVID-19 were much more likely to want to return to normal and engage in public activities. Morning Consult gauged the interest in both groups in returning to public activities, including going to the gym, taking a train, going to a party, attending a concert, going to a wedding, traveling abroad, and going on a cruise. In every possible scenario, the respondents that were not vaccinated were more inclined to participate in these public activities and events.

According to the poll, 43% of unvaccinated people felt it was safe to go to the gym versus only 27% of vaccinated Americans given the current state of the coronavirus pandemic. There were 42% of unvaccinated respondents who would attend a concert compared to 23% of vaccinated. When it comes to attending a sporting event, 42% of unvaccinated are ready to go to the ballpark, and 29% of vaccinated would go to the stadium to support their favorite sports team. There were 54% of vaccinated participants ready to get back to dating, while 43% of respondents were prepared to look for love despite being vaccinated for COVID-19. Speaking of love, there were 50% of unvaccinated people who felt comfortable attending a wedding, but just 38% of Americans who are vaccinated would go to a wedding. The poll found that 45% of unvaccinated people would attend a religious gathering versus 35% of those who were vaccinated.

The unvaccinated Americans were most comfortable with dining at a restaurant (63%), shopping at a mall (60%), and renting a car (58%).

When it comes to travel, 43% unvaccinated said they would take a bus, and just 24% for the inoculated group. The survey said 31% of vaccinated felt safe enough to travel abroad, compared to a mere 15% of the vaccinated respondents. When it comes to flying, 40% of the unvaccinated people were ready for air travel and 31% of vaccinated Americans wanted to go on an airplane. A whopping 37% of unvaccinated respondents said they would be comfortable going on a cruise, while only 17% of vaccinated would travel on a cruise line.

The survey conducted from May 6-8 also discovered that 88% of vaccinated people said COVID-19 poses a "severe" or "moderate" health risk in the United States, compared with 70% of unvaccinated respondents.

Many Vaccinated Americans Are Still Uncomfortable Returning to Public Activities. The U.S. Economy Needs Them… https://t.co/4v45FbDJPZ

— Morning Consult (@MorningConsult) 1620820802.0