Americans’ COVID-19 preventative practices in April and May 2020

Our research team conducted three cross-sectional, nationally representative online surveys of the U.S. population over a period of six weeks starting in early April and ending in mid-May 2020. The surveys provided a snapshot of the self-reported social distancing compliance, handwashing and mask wearing behavior, proportion of population receiving COVID-19 tests, and an indication of Americans’ sentiments about the pandemic during this period. We found that people going out of the home zero times in a four day period ranged from 17% to 28% during the three surveys, people wearing masks rose from 23% to 49% over the three surveys, and that people washing their hands three or more times a day remained high at 83 to 88% through all three surveys. The results provide evidence for State and national level policy makers on which segments of the population may need more attention with messaging to ensure compliance with staged re-opening of the economies. They also point researchers to areas for more research, especially related to mental health and testing coverage.