Are the social and economic costs of physical distancing measures justified by the health benefits of limiting COVID-19 transmission? To better understand how Americans weigh health against other priorities, RAND and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation conducted a survey of American health attitudes during COVID-19.

As has been widely reported, the health and economic burdens of COVID-19 have fallen most heavily on poor, non-white populations—those who are more likely to hold jobs that cannot be done remotely, or who live in crowded housing, or who lack access to high-quality healthcare. We designed our sample to emphasize the perspectives of these populations: 59 percent of respondents identified themselves as non-white, and 44 percent reported an annual income of less than $50,000. The survey was fielded during the summer of 2020 and provides an important first look at the issue of health priorities, liberty, and the economy.

Survey respondents placed a high priority on health, even where it implies limitations to their liberty and to the economy.

Overall, survey respondents placed a high priority on health, even where it implies limitations to their liberty and to the economy. For instance, only 25 percent somewhat or strongly agreed with the statement, “People's right to move about freely is so important that it's worth risking a substantial increase in coronavirus (COVID-19) infections and deaths.” Similarly, only 26 percent somewhat or strongly agreed that “Reopening the economy is so important that it's worth increasing the risk of new coronavirus (COVID-19) infections and deaths.” Slightly fewer (20 percent) somewhat or strongly agreed that “I am willing to risk my own health in order to return to normal life.”

Read the full article about prioritizing health by Christopher Nelson, Katherine Grace Carman, Anita Chandra at RAND Corporation.