89% of Filipinos worried about contracting COVID-19: SWS survey

A recent Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey conducted from April 28 to May 2, 2021, revealed that 89% of Filipinos are worried about contracting COVID-19.

Of this group, 70% expressed a great deal of worry, while 19% were somewhat worried, with only 11% reporting little or no worry.

This concern about COVID-19 infection is significantly higher than worries about previous viral outbreaks like Ebola, Swine Flu, Bird Flu, and SARS.

Despite ongoing vaccination efforts, a substantial majority of Filipinos remain concerned about infection.

The survey also highlighted an increase in the proportion of Filipinos who believe the "worst is yet to come" in the COVID-19 crisis, rising to 49% from 31% in November 2020.

Conversely, those who feel the "worst is behind us" decreased from 69% in November 2020 to 50% in May 2021.

The fear that the worst is yet to come is most prevalent in Balance Luzon (54%), followed by Metro Manila (50%), Visayas (49%), and Mindanao (38%).