The nationwide poll conducted by Zogby Strategies also showed almost 40% of Americans believe vaccine manufacturers shouldn’t have liability protection for injuries and deaths following COVID vaccination.
In a new nationwide online poll conducted by John Zogby Strategies, 32% of respondents said they believe Dr. Anthony Fauci has the “pharmaceutical industry’s best interest at heart,” not the public’s.
Among three specific groups, the percentage was even higher: 18- to 29-year-olds (41%), Hispanics (42%) and Blacks (38%).
Between Dec. 14, 2020, and March 26, 2021, 50,861 injuries, including 2,249 deaths, were reported to the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) following vaccinations with COVID-19 vaccines. (Reports of death and injuries to VAERS following vaccination do not require further investigation before a causal link can be established).
Amid ever-increasing calls from government officials that the entire U.S. population be vaccinated against COVID, the poll also asked participants about their viewpoints on the legal immunity granted by Congress to vaccine manufacturers that protects them from lawsuits relating to deaths and injuries following vaccination.
The liability shield, unique in America’s free market system which otherwise supports product liability law, was established by Congress under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, and reinforced by Congress in February 2020, with an amendment to the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act.
A third of the poll respondents said vaccine manufacturers should not have liability protection in the event someone is injured or dies as a result of vaccination, 39% said they should and 28% were unsure. After retesting the question, those who said they believe manufacturers should not have liability rose to 39%, a slight plurality.
When it came to vaccination status, a majority of the sample (59%) reported not having received an Emergency Use Authorization COVID vaccine versus 41% who have.
The poll had a margin of error of +/- 3.2 percentage points.