by Andrew Trunsky
Less than one-fifth of Americans say that they are still “completely or mostly” practicing social distancing, a new Gallup poll shows.
Approximately 18 percent of Americans are still strictly following social distancing guidelines, the lowest amount since the pandemic began last March, the Gallup survey shows. Social distancing participation peaked at 75 percent last April but has steadily declined since December, when coronavirus vaccines began to be distributed and administered nationwide.
Almost half of all Americans, 47 percent, said they have made “no attempt whatsoever” to isolate themselves, which is a pandemic high. But while 62 percent said that their lives were “somewhat back to normal,” only 15 percent said that their lives were “completely back to normal.”
Three-quarters of unvaccinated Americans, however, responded that their lives were back to normal compared to just 55 percent of their vaccinated counterparts who said the same, according to Gallup. Less than 40 percent said that they were still avoiding large crowds or avoiding public travel, and only 21 percent said that they were avoiding small gatherings with family and friends.
Over two-thirds of Americans have said that they wore a mask at least once in the past week, also down 11 points since May, Gallup data shows.
As more Americans have gotten vaccinated and coronavirus cases have plummeted nationwide, states have dropped the vast majority of their distancing restrictions. They have done so as a new, more contagious variant has driven isolated spikes in states where fewer residents are vaccinated.
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Andrew Trunsky is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
