Survey Shows Majority of Unvaccinated Americans Believe Microchips Are in Vaccines
A new survey from YouGov and The Economist released Thursday reveals a startling number of Americans will not get vaccinated due to concerns about side effects, "microchip" implantation and political motivations.
One in five Americans believe that the U.S. government is using the vaccine to plant microchip tracking devices into people, the survey found. A significant number of those who reject vaccines also cite the belief that inoculation in general causes autism.
As COVID-19 cases among the unvaccinated surge nationwide, vaccine conspiracies and rejection of the danger posed by COVID-19 appear the primary obstacles in containing the spread of the virus. Jeff Zients, coordinator of the White House coronavirus team, confirmed in a press briefing that unvaccinated Americans "account for virtually all recent Covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths."
The Economist and YouGov survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 1,500 American adults surveyed from July 10-13. The margin of error for the sample was estimated at about three percent.
Republicans, according to the poll, were far more likely to reject vaccines, with more than one-fourth (29 percent) saying they won't get the vaccine compared to just four percent of Democrats.
"The skepticism about the threats posed by the coronavirus is clear among vaccine rejectors," YouGov said of its results. "While more than one in four of those fully vaccinated believe the dangers of COVID-19 were exaggerated for political reasons, three times as many vaccine rejectors say that is the case."
Pollsters said that when asked why they will not get the vaccine, 90 percent feared the side effects. Only 16 percent believe that most of the new COVID-19 cases are occurring among the unvaccinated and, for the most part, feel that the virus is spreading equally among vaccinated and unvaccinated Americans.
Unsurprisingly, respondents who reject the vaccine overwhelmingly said they aren't afraid of contracting COVID-19 and believe that its threat has largely been overblown for political reasons. Less than one in ten of vaccine rejectors said they trust medical advice from White House medical advisor Anthony Fauci, and only one in five trusts the Centers for Disease Control.
Fauci told reporters that in June, almost all (99.2 percent) of COVID deaths in the U.S. could be attributed to the unvaccinated.
But CDC data shows that roughly 67 percent of American adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 58 percent are fully vaccinated. While the proliferation of anti-vaccine sentiments is cause for concern, they survey also found that vaccinated Americans, or those who plan to get the vaccine, are critical of those who refuse vaccination.
Two-thirds of vaccinated Americans don't believe that there is any good reason to reject the vaccine, with only 15 percent saying those who refuse vaccination have good reason to do so.
Most Americans reject these theories, but only minorities of those who oppose their vaccinations do. Nearly one in three say they aren't sure what to believe," YouGov said.
