Differences emerge between U.S. and Great Britain priority groups for COVID-19 vaccinations
Washington, DC, January 29, 2021 — As health care workers and the elderly line up to get their COVID-19 vaccinations in both the United States and Great Britain, the two countries don't agree fully on who should be next in line to receive the vaccines.
Detailed Findings
In Great Britain, people believe the next highest priority groups should be teachers and nursery workers (46%), emergency services staff (42%), police officers (35%), and supermarket workers (33%).
- Britons are more likely than Americans to list supermarket workers as a primary vaccination priority (33% in Great Britain vs. 24% in U.S.). But, around a quarter of Britons and Americans both say the group is a secondary priority.
- Front-line or retail workers are higher on Great Britain’s priority list as well, with respondents listing them as a relatively high primary and secondary vaccination priority (27% and 28%, respectively). Americans are less likely to list this group as a primary or secondary vaccination priority (7% and 14%, respectively).
In the United States, police (44%) and K-12 teachers (35%) are also high on the vaccination list, but Americans are more likely to prioritize caregivers (52%) than Britons (30%).
- Americans are also more likely than Britons to list food and agriculture workers as a secondary priority group (20% in the U.S. vs. 8% in Great Britain) for the COVID-19 vaccine.
About the Study
Great Britain Sample: Ipsos interviewed a representative sample of 1,083 Britons aged 18-75. Interviews were conducted online from 22nd – 25th January 2021. Data are weighted to match the profile of the population. All polls are subject to a wide range of potential sources of error. Full question wording is below:
Q6a. Which three or four, if any, of the following groups do you think should be the next highest priority to receive the COVID-19 vaccination?
Q6b. And which three or four of the remaining groups, if any, do you think should be the next priority to receive the COVID-19 vaccination?
- People aged 60 to 69
- People aged 50 to 59
- People aged 18 to 49
- Young people aged under 18
- Public transport workers
- Teachers and nursery workers
- Police officers
- Other frontline public sector workers (not in the health or emergency services) who deal with the public as part of their job
- Other staff working in emergency services such as fire and rescue officers and 999/111 service workers
- Postal workers and delivery drivers
- Staff working in supermarkets and food shops
- Journalists
- Civil servants working on the response to the pandemic
- Armed forces
- Waste disposal workers
- Bank and building society workers
- Social workers
- Prisoners
- Food, farm and agricultural workers
- People working in the entertainment industry (e.g. film crews, actors, etc.)
- People who care for vulnerable friends or relatives (such as the elderly or disabled) – not professional carers
- Professional sports people
- None of the above
- Don’t know
U.S. Sample: These are the U.S. findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between January 21-22, 2021. For this survey, a sample of 1,004 adults age 18+ from the continental U.S., Alaska, and Hawaii was interviewed online in English.
The sample for this study was randomly drawn from Ipsos’ online panel (see link below for more info on “Access Panels and Recruitment”), partner online panel sources, and “river” sampling (see link below for more info on the Ipsos “Ampario Overview” sample method) and does not rely on a population frame in the traditional sense. Ipsos uses fixed sample targets, unique to each study, in drawing a sample. After a sample has been obtained from the Ipsos panel, Ipsos calibrates respondent characteristics to be representative of the U.S. Population using standard procedures such as raking-ratio adjustments. The source of these population targets is U.S. Census 2018 American Community Survey data. The sample drawn for this study reflects fixed sample targets on demographics. Posthoc weights were made to the population characteristics on gender, age, race/ethnicity, region, and education.
Statistical margins of error are not applicable to online non-probability polls. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error and measurement error. Where figures do not sum to 100, this is due to the effects of rounding. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll has a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points for all respondents. Ipsos calculates a design effect (DEFF) for each study based on the variation of the weights, following the formula of Kish (1965). This study had a credibility interval adjusted for design effect of the following (n=1,004, DEFF=1.5, adjusted Confidence Interval=+/-5.0 percentage points). This work was carried out in accordance with the requirements of the international quality standard for market research.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Chris Jackson
Senior Vice President, U.S., Public Affairs
Ipsos
+1 202 420 2025
[email protected]
Kate Silverstein
Media Relations Specialist, U.S., Public Affairs
Ipsos
+1 718 755-8829
[email protected]
For more information on COVID-19 please click here
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