SANTA MONICA, CA — As the COVID-19 pandemic develops and Americans face the delta variant, and now omicron variant, a survey from MyBioSource.com asks: Do you think politicians should be required to publicly disclose their vaccine status?
When restrictions were put in place to help stop the spread of the highly infectious virus, Americans were called on to wear face masks and practice social distancing. Businesses were temporarily closed during lockdown periods and politicians and decision-makers were pushed to help save lives and protect the economy.
“Many politicians and public figures have pushed back against these restrictions arguing mostly that the seriousness of COVID has been overplayed – the rationale for this pushback is about protecting our freedoms,” according to MyBioSource.com.
One particular area of contention regarding freedoms under COVID-19 restrictions has been about mask-wearing in schools, and these arguments have largely been drawn according to political orientations, particularly in states such as Florida.
In September 2021, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis appealed to a judge’s ruling that a blanket ban on mask mandates exceeded the state government’s authority. Politicians who are against mask mandates say it’s the parents, and not any government, who should make decisions for their children. And when it comes to kids, the US law does give parents considerable leeway, particularly if religion is involved, to make decisions on their child’s behalf. However, proponents of mask mandates in schools see it a different way – they say that children have their own rights that are independent of their parents’ choices. For example, a parent cannot by law deny their children a basic education or access to medical treatment. Moreover, vaccine mandates already exist for childhood diseases, and so the same should be applied to COVID-19 vaccines.
For people who are weighing the differences between individual freedoms versus vaccine mandates, the advice from politicians can be disorientating and confusing. Many anti-vaccine politicians are actually fully vaccinated, so MyBioSource.com wanted to gauge people’s opinions on how much of an example politicians should set when it comes to their own personal choices about vaccines. And in December 2021, 3,187 people took the survey and shared their viewpoints.
In California, 75 percent of residents want politicians to disclose their COVID-19 vaccine statuses, according to the survey. This is much higher compared to other states and the overall national average.
In the US, an average of 64 percent believe it would be prudent for politicians, who make decisions on behalf of the electorate, to formally disclose whether they are vaccinated or not, survey results found.
In Alaska, South Carolina and North Dakota, under 50 percent of respondents thought politicians should disclose their vaccine statuses.
From January 17, 2022 to January 23, 2022, unvaccinated people were 5.9 times more likely to get COVID-19 than people who received their booster dose, according to the state of California’s website.
(Courtesy of MyBioSource.com)
See the infographic with results from each state.
Patch Asks: Do you think politicians should be required to publicly disclose their vaccine status?
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