![]() ![]() The Biden administration’s early moves on the economy also drew notable public support. Most reported being fully vaccinated – defined at the time as having either two Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or one Johnson & Johnson – and most fully vaccinated adults said they had received a booster shot, too. As of this January, majorities in every major demographic group said they had received at least one dose of a vaccine. After the new president easily met his goal of distributing 100 million doses in his first 100 days in office, 72% of Americans – including 55% of Republicans – said the administration was doing an excellent or good job overseeing the production and distribution of vaccines. The rapid deployment of vaccines only burnished Biden’s standing. adults said they were very or somewhat confident in Biden to handle the public health impact of the coronavirus. In February 2021, 56% of Americans said they expected the new administration’s plans and policies to improve the coronavirus situation. In a January 2021 survey, a majority of registered voters said a major reason why Trump lost the election was that his administration did not do a good enough job handling the coronavirus outbreak.Īt least initially, Biden inspired more confidence. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images)īiden won the White House in part because the public saw him as more qualified than former President Donald Trump to address the pandemic. adults approved of the economic aid package. A year ago, optimism was in the air President Joe Biden speaks to reporters in the White House Rose Garden in March 2021, a day after signing the $1.9 billion American Rescue Plan into law. Amid these criticisms, a growing share of Americans appear ready to move on to a new normal, even as the exact contours of that new normal are hard to discern. A majority of Americans now give Biden negative marks for his handling of the outbreak, and ratings for other government leaders and public health officials have tumbled. And thorny new societal problems have emerged, including alarming increases in murder and fatal drug overdose rates that may be linked to the upheaval caused by the pandemic.įor the public, the sense of optimism that the country might be turning the corner – evident in surveys shortly after President Joe Biden took office and as vaccines became widely available – has given way to weariness and frustration. The nation’s political fractures are reflected in near-daily disputes over mask and vaccine rules. The economic recovery has been uneven, with wage gains for many workers offset by the highest inflation rate in four decades and the labor market roiled by the Great Resignation. ![]() The staggering death toll of the virus continues to rise, with nearly as many Americans lost in the pandemic’s second year as in the first, despite the widespread availability of vaccines. Many states eased mask requirements for those who are vaccinated after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised that fully vaccinated people could go without masks in most indoor and outdoor settings.The landscape in other ways remains unsettled. Some states continue to require the use of masks for unvaccinated people, and some governors are still mandating that businesses observe social distancing rules, even as they lift capacity limits. In the few states that have yet to fully reopen, governors have set targets for doing so based on vaccination rates or other health measures.Ī full reopening still comes with rules in many places. States have moved closer to lifting all restrictions on businesses and gatherings as the vaccination campaign has progressed. A nationwide patchwork of rules for businesses and residents resulted over months of trial and error, as governors reopened some sectors only to later re-close and reopen them again as infection rates rose and fell. Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, it has been largely up to state and local officials to determine what restrictions, if any, to impose to slow new infections. It appears nearly the entire country will be open with few restrictions by the Fourth of July. Once 70 percent of residents have been fully vaccinated.įurther reopening plans will be announced before the current executive order expires on July 4.Īll across the country, mask mandates have eased, restrictions have lifted and most states have gone back to business as usual. ![]()
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