The Biden Administration\u2019s ambitious plan to vaccinate 300 million Americans by the end of the summer faces multiple challenges — and not all of them are related to distribution or production. <\/p>\n
According to a recent survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, 26,590,000 Americans — or 10.7% of the 18 and older population — say they will either probably or definitely not agree to receive the vaccination when given the opportunity. <\/p>\n
The share of eligible residents who will likely refuse vaccination varies considerably nationwide, from as many as 25.8% of the adult population to as little as 3.9%, depending on the state. States where the largest shares of adults are open to taking the vaccine are concentrated in the Northeast.<\/p>\n
The majority of Americans who have yet to be vaccinated cite one of three reasons: either they are concerned about possible side effects, or they want to wait to see if it is safe, or they think that others would benefit more than themselves from a vaccination. Others cite different reasons. <\/p>\n
Nationwide, 15,800,000 people, 6.3% of the adult population, do not trust the COVID-19 vaccines, and 5,780,000, or 2.3%, do not trust vaccines in general. Additionally, 13,630,000 American adults, or 5.5% of the 18 and older population, have not been vaccinated because they do not trust the government. <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the virus continues to spread. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been 33,163,632 confirmed cases of the virus and a total of 595,256 Americans have died as a result. <\/p>\n
So far, 147,758,585 Americans — or 45.2% of the total population — have received the full course of vaccinations necessary to protect against COVID-19.<\/p>\n
All survey data used in this story was published by the Census on June 16, 2021. All data related to COVID-19 infections, fatalities, and vaccinations is current as of June 17, 2021.<\/p>\n