BALTIMORE — A total of 49% of Marylanders said they would not take an FDA approved COVID-19 vaccine if it was made available, according to a poll released by Goucher College.
Although the poll shows that 48% of Marylanders said they would take a COVID-19 vaccine, experts believe there is still some concern and lack of confidence in the possibility.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has dominated the lives of voters around the world and in Maryland. Residents here feel the strain of the virus, which has taken a toll on both their financial and mental health,” said Mileah Kromer, director of the Sarah T. Hughes Field Politics Center at Goucher College. “While most residents agree with the public health guidelines of wearing a mask and physical distancing, they are deeply divided regarding their confidence in a potential vaccine.”
The survey learned that the majority of Mayland residents feel the course of the coronavirus pandemic is heavily reflected on the guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Maryland Department of Health (MDH).
About 89% of residents believe that regulations put in place such as mask-wearing and social distancing, could stop the spread of the virus, the poll reports.
Data from the poll also shows that 69% of residents have some type of concern when it comes to contracting them or a family member contracting COVID-19.
The Goucher College Poll interviewed 1,002 Marylanders over the age of 18 to conduct this survey. The institution's goal was to provide neutral, unbiased, and independent information on resident perceptions and opinions on the status of the coronavirus in the state.
On Monday, Johnson & Johnson temporarily paused all of its COVID-19 vaccine trials after a participant suffered an "unexplained illness."
The company said Monday night that the participant's illness is being reviewed and evaluated by an independent safety monitoring board, as well as its own physicians.
"Adverse events – illnesses, accidents, etc. - even those that are serious, are an expected part of any clinical study, especially large studies," the company said in a statement.
Last month, Johnson & Johnson said it aimed to enroll 60,000 volunteers to test its single-dose approach in the U.S. and seven other countries. Other COVID-19 vaccine candidates in the final stage of testing in the U.S. require two shots. The Johnson & Johnson trial is slated to be one of the largest coronavirus studies yet.