Gallup: U.S. residents hesitant to return to regular activities

April 3 (UPI) -- Concern about the coronavirus is weighing heavy on U.S. residents with only 14 percent saying they would resume their daily activities if it was up to them, according to a new Gallup poll released this week.

Forty-two percent of respondents to the survey, taken from March 27-29, said they would rather wait until the number of new COVID-19 cases declines significantly while 38 percent said they would like to stay away from their activities until there were no new cases for a period of time.

"Some of Americans' reluctance to go back to normal can be explained by their fear that they, themselves, would be at risk of experiencing severe COVID-19 symptoms," Gallup's Lydia Saad said.

"Nearly half say it is 'very likely' (11 percent) or 'likely' (37 percent) that they would face this risk. Importantly, there is a strong correlation between Americans' estimate of their personal risk and their readiness to return to normal."

That concern over resuming activities stretched across the board, from all age groups and political groups. Those aged 18-29 (20 percent), men (19 percent) and Republicans (22 percent) ranked highest among those who would resume activities if they could decide for themselves.

Democrats (50 percent), those 65 and older (45 percent), women (44 percent) and those living in the suburbs (40 percent) were more likely to say they would want to see no new cases for some time before resuming daily activities.

Gallup responders still showed hesitation when asked how quickly they would return to work if their local and state governments said it was OK to do so. About 22 percent said they would resume normal day-to-day activities immediately while 7 in 10 said they would "wait to see what happens with the spread of the virus before resuming." Another 9 percent said they would limit social contact indefinitely.