Nearly half of Americans now believe that the impact of COVID-19 on their daily lives is getting worse, thanks to the recent surge in cases. The seven-day average of new cases is over 66,600, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an increase of about 64% over the previous week.
Only about 40% of Americans still say the pandemic is getting better, according to a recent online survey conducted by Gallup of U.S. adults during July 19–26, 2021. Meanwhile, 45% reported they believe it is getting worse. This is a dramatic shift from June, when only 3% of Americans felt the COVID-19 outbreak was getting worse in the U.S.
July’s drop in optimism marked the first time this year that more Americans reported feeling more negative than positive about the state of COVID-19. Yet while optimism has fallen, it’s nowhere near the 73% of Americans who reported being pessimistic in November 2020 during the major wave of cases that hit last fall.
With this latest wave of cases, about 41% of Americans now believe that disruptions to their work and personal lives stemming from COVID will continue throughout this year, while 42% expect COVID to impact their lives into 2022.
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