A majority of people in the
tri-state area say the government should be doing more to make COVID-19 testing
more available to the public, according to Mount Sinai South Nassau's 12th
"Truth in Medicine" poll.
The poll found that 81% of the
public thinks the government should be doing more to make testing available to
the public. Only 11% say that the government is doing a good job.
Mount Sinai South Nassau says
the results found that 57% of people hold the federal government most
accountable for lack of testing and 15% say the state government is most to
blame.
The survey also found that more
than 60% of respondents fear that the pandemic will last another year.
Mount Sinai South Nassau president Dr.
Adhi Sharma says he can't predict when the pandemic will end but that it's
important to watch for the change from a pandemic to an endemic.
"A pandemic is when the
rate of deaths and hospitalization exceeds the resources that are typically
available," Sharma says.
He says that is what is being
seen now across New York.
Sharma says an endemic will be
when we're able to live with COVID as a disease that's part of our
immunity and manageable.
More than 60% of respondents
believe in mandatory masks in government buildings, private businesses and
schools.
The poll was done in early
January before the federal government began a nationwide push to make free
tests kits available for every household in United States.