Poll: Fauci should get COVID-19 vaccine first

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• According to the Harris Poll, over 40 percent of Americans would be confident to take the COVID-19 vaccine if the country’s top infectious disease doctor Anthony Fauci would take it first.
• Former President Barack Obama and President-elect Joe Biden were tied at 36 percent as the first individuals to take the shots before residents would follow suit.
• Almost 80 percent were concerned about the vaccine’s safety while 4 out of 10 said that they don’t believe in its effectiveness.

According to a recent poll, about 42 percent of US residents said that they would take the COVID-19 vaccine if Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s lead infectious disease expert, would be the first to get vaccinated. He was the most chosen guinea pig to take the vaccine.

Conducted from November 20 to December 2, the survey by Harris Poll had over a sample size of 1,980 US adults.

Meanwhile, 39 percent of Americans would gain more confidence in the vaccine of the drugmaker’s CEO would be the first to get doses.

At 36 percent, both former President Barack Obama and President-elect Joe Biden were tied. About 13 percent, though, said that they would be more hesitant in getting the vaccine if Obama would get the shot first.

The former Presidents ━ Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton ━ said on Wednesday that they would volunteer to be the first ones to take the vaccine shots and have it filmed to encourage the public that it is safe.

“I promise you that when it’s been made for people who are less at risk, I will be taking it… I may end up taking it on TV or having it filmed, just so that people know that I trust this science,” Obama told SiriusXM’s The Joe Madison Show.

On the other hand, 26 percent of respondents suggested that they would take the vaccine if President Donald Trump would get it first, while 19 percent claimed they would unlikely to follow suit.

The poll also showed that the vaccine would be proved to be safe if actors like Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Fox News host Tucker Carlson and reality celebrity Kim Kardashian would be the first people to get vaccinated.

The poll also showed that about eight of 10 people were concerned about the vaccine’s safety. A huge majority of them argued that they were cautious about the side effects.

Meanwhile, 43 percent said they don’t trust the vaccine, doubting its capability to prevent COVID-19, while 19 percent said that they don’t agree to get vaccinated at all.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, health care workers and elderly residents in long-term care facilities would be the first groups who will be receiving the vaccine once it’s out.

Big pharmaceutical companies Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna announced that their vaccines’ efficacy was over 90 percent. Both drugmakers have already submitted their emergency use proposal to the Food and Drug Administration, waiting for clearance.

Source: New York Post