Six in 10 unvaccinated Americans think travelers are responsible for the current surge in Covid cases.
gettyOne of the most interesting takeaways from the latest Ipsos survey is who vaccinated and unvaccinated Americans blame for the current surge in Covid-19 cases.
Four out of five (79%) vaccinated Americans point their finger at unvaccinated people, and they also sprinkle some blame among Donald Trump (36%), conservative media (33%), and foreign travelers coming to the United States (30%).
In contrast, six out of 10 unvaccinated Americans blame travelers — both those traveling to the US (37%) and Americans traveling abroad (23%). They also give a finger wag to mainstream media (27%) and Joe Biden (21%), while only a small minority (10%) of unvaccinated Americans blame themselves for the current surge in infections.
In reality, there does appear to be a connection between vaccination rates and the spread of Covid-19 in communities, in that the states where Covid is spreading the fastest tend to have the highest number of unvaccinated residents.
For the past month, Florida has been the epicenter of the “pandemic of the unvaccinated.” The Sunshine State is currently recording an average of 121.5 new daily Covid-19 infections per 100,000 people, according to data from the Brown School of Public Health. That’s four times the national average and nearly five times the threshold of what health officials consider a “very high” rate of spread.
Less than half of Floridians are fully vaccinated, according to Brown University’s vaccine tracker.
The current level of transmission is of importance to people cruising out of Florida, which is home to the three largest cruise ports in the United States. Thanks to DeSantis’s much-hyped but unpopular law banning so-called vaccine passports, cruise lines are prohibited from requiring passengers sailing from Florida to show proof of their vaccination status.
Some foreign destinations and a growing number of U.S. businesses are making it both harder and less appealing for unvaccinated people to travel.
Canada is opening the border with the United States on August 9 — but only to fully vaccinated American citizens and permanent residents, more than 16 months after closing to non-essential travel due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Hotels in some destinations — including Portugal, Austria and a popular Mexican resort town — are asking guests for proof of vaccination at check-in.
Today New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio announced that proof of vaccination will soon be required for indoor dining and fitness in the Big Apple. This follows the decision by Broadway theaters and other city venues to require proof of vaccination
As the delta variant of the Covid-19 virus fuels a spike in cases in many areas of the United States, a “no vax, no service” policy is being adopted by a growing number of restaurants and bars from coast to coast. Vax-only restaurants are not just showing up in major coastal cities like New York City, Washington, DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. The trend is also picking up steam in Atlanta, Boulder, St. Louis and New Orleans.
