More than half of Americans aren’t very confident they can get tested for COVID-19.
According to a YouGov survey of more than 12,000 US adults, roughly two in five (19%) are very confident they could get tested for the novel coronavirus if they had symptoms, while a quarter (25%) are somewhat confident.
Just under a quarter (23%) are not very confident while the same number are not at all confident they can get a test if needed.
These results come as the United States grapples with a lack of tests brought on by several factors. After the Centers for Disease Control in February chose not to use tests that were being distributed by the World Health Organization, it began making its own tests which were then subject to manufacturing issues. Since then, the Federal Drug Administration has allowed private companies and academic institutions to make their own tests in an effort to catch up with the country’s demand.
However, overall Americans are not confident they can get a test. While confidence is largely consistent among the country’s regions, those in the west — which includes hard-hit Washington state and California — are more likely to be very confident they can get a test compared to other regions.
There is also a stark difference in confidence along party lines. While 35 percent of Democrats are very or somewhat confident they can be tested if needed, 64 percent of Republicans say as much.
Confidence among age groups is differs as well, with 42 percent of othse 18-14 saying they are somewhat or very confident they could be tested, compared to those age 25-34 (41%), 35-44 (46%), 45-54 (38%) and 55+ (47%).
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