Marylanders are divided over when they think they will be able to return to their pre-pandemic ways of life — if ever — according to the results of a new Goucher Poll released on Wednesday.
Of the poll respondents, 5 percent think they will be able to fully return to their “normal, pre-COVID lives” within the next one to three months; 15 percent think it will take four to six months; 28 percent think it will be within the next year; and 29 percent think it will happen more than a year from now.
On either side of the spectrum, 5 percent think their lives are already back to normal, while 16 percent think they will never be able to fully return to normal.
Compared to March 2021, Marylanders are somewhat less concerned that they or a close family member will contract COVID-19, including 40 percent of Marylanders who say they are “not at all” or “a little” concerned. However, 59 percent say they are “somewhat” or “very concerned.”
The poll found that 78 percent of Marylanders said they have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Another 1 percent said they plan to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, 5 percent said they will wait to see how the vaccines work for other people before getting it themselves. Two percent will only get a COVID-19 vaccine if it is required, and 9 percent said they definitely will not get the vaccine.
As more people become eligible for COVID vaccine booster shots, an overwhelming majority of vaccinated Marylanders (83 percent) say they will likely get a booster shot when it becomes available. Meanwhile, 15 percent of vaccinated Marylanders say they are unlikely to get a booster.
Also among vaccinated Marylanders, 67 percent said they have limited the time spent with unvaccinated friends, family members and acquaintances, while 30 percent said they have not.
Marylanders’ views of how Hogan has handled the pandemic remain high, but are down slightly from a year ago.
The poll found that 79 percent of survey respondents approve of Hogan’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak in Maryland, while 20 percent disapprove. That approval is down slightly from a year ago, when 82 percent of Marylanders approved of his handling of the pandemic.
The Goucher Poll surveyed 700 Marylanders by phone from Oct. 14-20. For the sample size of 700 Maryland adults, there is a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percent.
For the sample of 631 adult Marylanders identified as registered voters, there is a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percent.
