Majority of North Carolinians concerned about COVID-19
Published September 30, 2021
In the latest High Point University Poll, a majority (51%) of North Carolinians said that they are concerned about becoming sick with COVID-19, and almost 2 in 5 (37%) said that they are not concerned. Only 4% of those surveyed said that they already tested positive for the virus and 8% did not offer an opinion.
Nearly half (48%) of adults in North Carolina said that they have received both doses of a two-dose vaccine, and 7% said that they have the first of two doses. Only 11% surveyed received the single-dose COVID-19 vaccine. About one-third (32%) of adults in North Carolina said that they have not gotten the vaccine.
When asked about whether or not companies should be legally allowed to require employees to receive certain vaccines, North Carolinians were generally split. Nearly half (47%) of respondents said companies should be legally allowed to require certain vaccines, while 43% said they should not. Another 10% of respondents did not offer an opinion.
North Carolinians were asked if, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, if they were more or less concerned today than they were a year ago about their personal health and the health of their family. A majority (51%) of respondents said that they were either more concerned or somewhat more concerned. About 2 in 5 (42%) said that they are less concerned or somewhat less concerned about their personal health and the health of their family.
The HPU Poll asked respondents how much they have heard about the delta variant of COVID-19. Most (92%) of the adults surveyed said that they have either heard a lot or a little bit about the variant, while only 8% said that they heard almost nothing or offered no opinion. When asked how concerned are you about this variant, a majority (51%) of respondents said that they were either extremely concerned or very concerned. Less than one-quarter (24%) said that they were somewhat concerned, 13% said that they were not very concerned, and 9% said that they were not at all concerned.
The HPU Poll also asked North Carolinians if they received the seasonal influenza vaccine this year. About one-third (29%) said yes and almost three-quarters (69%) said no. Of those that responded no, another one-third (37%) said that they intend to receive the seasonal influenza vaccine this year, while more than half (51%) said that they do not. Another 12% offered no opinion either way.
“A majority of North Carolinians are still concerned about becoming sick with COVID-19,” said Brian McDonald, associate director of the HPU Poll and adjunct graduate school instructor. “That being said, about one-third of those surveyed still told us that they have not received the COVID-19 vaccine.”
NC residents – COVID-19 Concern (September 2021)
Are you concerned about becoming sick with the COVID-19 virus, or are you not concerned about that?
Concerned– 51%
Not concerned – 37%
I already tested positive for COVID-19 – 4%
Don’t know/refused/unsure – 8%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – COVID-19 Vaccine (September 2021)
Have you personally received the COVID-19 vaccine, or not? If yes, did you receive a single-dose vaccine, the first of two doses, or have you gotten both doses of a two-dose vaccine?
Yes, got the single-dose vaccine – 11%
Yes, got the first dose of the two-dose vaccine – 7%
Yes, got both doses of a two-dose vaccine – 48%
No, have not gotten the vaccine – 32%
Don’t know/refused/unsure – 2%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – Employer Requirements (September 2021)
Do you think companies should be legally allowed to require employees to receive certain vaccines?
Yes – 47%
No – 43%
Not sure – 10%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – COVID-19 Concern (September 2021)
Still thinking about the COVID-19 virus, are you more or less concerned today than you were a year ago about your personal health and the health of your family?
More concerned – 26%
Somewhat more concerned – 25%
Somewhat less concerned – 23%
Less concerned – 19%
Don’t know/refused/unsure – 6%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – Delta Variant (September 2021)
How much have you heard about the delta variant of the COVID-19 virus?
A lot – 58%
A little bit – 34%
Almost nothing – 6%
Don’t know/refused/unsure – 2%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – Delta Variant Concern (September 2021)
Given what you know about the delta strain of the COVID-19 virus, how concerned are you about that variant?
Extremely concerned – 26%
Very concerned – 25%
Somewhat concerned – 24%
Not very concerned – 13%
Not at all concerned – 9%
Don’t know/refused/unsure – 3%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – Influenza Vaccine (September 2021)
Did you receive the seasonal influenza vaccine this year?
Yes – 29%
No – 69%
Not sure – 2%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
NC residents – Influenza Vaccine Intent (September 2021)
Do you intend to receive the seasonal influenza vaccine this year?
[ONLY ASKED OF RESPONDENTS SAYING ‘NO’ TO HAVING RECEIVED FLU SHOT]
Yes – 37%
No – 51%
Not sure – 12%
(Telephone and online interviews with North Carolina residents, surveyed Sept. 10 – 24, n = 876 and credibility interval is +/- 3.6%)
The most recent HPU Poll was fielded by live interviewers at the High Point University Survey Research Center calling on Sept. 10 through Sept. 24, 2021, and an online survey was fielded at the same time. The responses from a sample of all North Carolina counties came from 876 adults interviewed online (772 respondents) as well as landline or cellular telephones (104 respondents). The Survey Research Center contracted with dynata, formerly Research Now SSI: https://www.dynata.com/ to acquire these samples, and fielded the online survey using the SRC’s Qualtrics platform. This is a combined sample of live phone interviews and online interviews. The online sampling is from a panel of respondents, so their participation does not adhere to usual assumptions associated with random selection. Therefore, it is not appropriate to assign a classic margin of sampling error for the results. In this case, the SRC provides a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points to account for a traditional 95% confidence interval for the estimates (plus or minus 3.3 percentage points) and a design effect of 1.1 (based on the weighting). The data is weighted toward population estimates for age, gender, education and race/ethnicity-based on U.S. Census numbers for North Carolina. Factors such as question wording and other methodological choices in conducting survey research can introduce additional errors into the findings of opinion polls. Details from this survey are available at https://www.highpoint.edu/src/files/2021/09/82memoA.pdf .
