In April 2022, a federal judge in Florida struck down the US government’s mask mandate for aeroplanes and public transportation. Despite this a majority of US adults (about 57 per cent) want travellers on airplanes and public transportation to wear masks.
Only a smaller share of 42 per cent of the US adults do not want travellers to wear masks on planes and public places, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.
COVID VACCINATION AND MASK REQUIRED
A majority of US adults who have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine (66 per cent) say travellers on airplanes and public transportation should use masks. Among those who have not received a COVID-19 vaccine, just 25 per cent think masks should be required. Coming to politics, 60 per cent of unvaccinated Democrats think masks should be required for travellers. Meanwhile, only 12 per cent of unvaccinated Republicans think masks should be required.
DECLINING SHARE OF WEARING MASK
Overall, 30 percent of the people say they have been wearing a mask inside stores and businesses all or most of the time over the past month. About a quarter (23 per cent) say they have done this some of the time, and 44 per cent say they have never or hardly ever done this. Democrats remain much more likely than Republicans to say they have been wearing a mask frequently when inside stores and businesses (42 per cent to 14 per cent).
LESS BOTHERED WHEN IN PUBLIC
About a third (32 per cent) say it bothers them a lot or some when stores and businesses require mask for service, but 68 per cent say this bothers them not too much or not at all. The share of adults who say they are bothered by business mask requirements is up just 4 percentage points since November 2020. Overall, 37 per cent of adults say it bothers them a lot or some when people in public do not wear a mask around them; a much larger share (63 per cent) say this bothers them not too much or not at all. In November 2020, before COVID-19 vaccines were widely available, 72% said it bothered them a lot or some when people around them in public did not wear a mask.
WEARING MASK TO HELP DEAL WITH OTHER INFECTIOUS DISEASES
About 71 per cent of the people surveyed say that they would probably wear a mask in public if they were sick with a cold or the flu. Meanwhile 27 per cent say they would probably not. Those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine are much more likely than those who have not to say they would probably wear a mask if they had a cold or the flu (78 per cent to 47 per cent).
