U.S. poll shows growing worries about coronavirus; drop in confidence in government

A man wearing a protective mask is seen following the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in New York City, U.S., March 16, 2020. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Sixty percent of Americans are now ‘very’ or ‘somewhat worried’ they or a family member will be exposed to the coronavirus, up from 36% in February, while confidence in the government’s ability to respond has fallen sharply, a new poll showed.

The Gallup poll was conducted on March 2-13, shortly after the first positive case of the fast-spreading virus was reported in the United States, and came as the Trump administration accelerated its response to the pandemic.

Sixty-one percent of Americans are ‘very’ or ‘somewhat confident’ in the U.S. government’s ability to respond, a drop of 16% from February, the poll showed.

(This story has been refiled to fix keyword used by media clients).

Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Sandra Maler

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source: reuters.com