Many Americans say enough is enough with social distancing and business closures, poll says

A new study reported Thursday by Bloomberg says that Americans are losing their commitment to social distancing among the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

An associated poll, which relied on data from analytics company Unacast, also finds a decidedly partisan split on Americans' views on keeping the country under lockdown measures.

What are the details?

Data from Unacast, Bloomberg reports, details many Americans' frustration at business closures.

"People in the U.S. moved around 41% less in April than they normally would," Bloomberg reports, pointing out that the only noticeable increase in movement was during the business week, suggesting that people were leaving their homes to go to work.

As for weekends these days, the commitment to social distancing seems to be eroding.

A national survey from Surgo Foundation finds that a "partisan split" has emerged over the states reopening amid the outbreak. The survey says that approximately 50% of polled Republicans said they were in favor of maintaining the status quo of keeping lockdown measures in place, all while continuing to keep nonessential businesses closed. Nearly all of Democrats polled, however, say that they are in favor of continuing extreme lockdown measures and do not want any nonessential businesses to reopen during the pandemic.

The poll, which was conducted between April 27 and May 4, finds that 92% of Democrats polled say the U.S. should remain under lockdown. Just 49% of Republicans agreed.

Bloomberg writes, "In states with the greatest decrease in average distance traveled per day, confirmed COVID-19 cases were more likely to stabilize or decline when plotted on a two-week lag, the maximum incubation period of the virus. New York, one of the earliest states hit, reduced its travel more than most other states and saw its daily case rate drop."

You can see the full statistics and report here.