1 in 5 say they’ve lost close friend, relative in pandemic: poll

Nearly 20 percent of Americans in an AP-NORC poll released Thursday said they’ve lost a close friend or a relative to the coronavirus since its outbreak early last year.

The new survey shows that 19 percent of respondents said a close friend or relative died from the virus, an uptick from 17 percent who said the same in a poll in December.

Pollsters also noted that while concerns over losing loved ones remains high, it has fallen in recent months as vaccine distribution ramps up. 

Thirty-one percent of Americans in the new survey said they are “extremely” or “very” worried about themselves or someone in their family contracting the coronavirus, a drop from 43 percent in December and February. Another 36 percent are “somewhat” worried, according to the new poll.

Thirty-three percent of respondents also said they are “not too” worried or “not worried at all,” a rise from 27 percent from February.

The poll’s release comes as the nation marks the one-year anniversary since the U.S. shut down. Since the pandemic began, there have been nearly 30 million cases, and over 529,000 people have died.

The spread of three vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson have provided hope the end of the pandemic may be near. Over 127 million vaccine doses have been distributed, and over 96 million have been administered as of Wednesday morning, according to a tracker from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

However, more variants of the disease are still spreading across the U.S., and a drop in cases has slowed. 

The AP-NORC poll surveyed 1,434 adults from Feb. 25-March 1 and has a margin of error of 3.4 percent.