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   disappear," Trump said in late February 2020. "The coronavirus is very   
   much under control in the USA."   
      
   Trump later admitted to veteran journalist Bob Woodward that he had   
   indeed tried to downplay the severity of the virus because he did not   
   want to create panic.   
      
      
   “From early in the pandemic, following the rhetoric of then-President   
   Trump, Republicans have consistently not been as concerned about the   
   dangers of COVID-19, and they have been more skeptical of medical advice   
   about preventing its spread,” ??Masket said. “Democratic leaders have   
   consistently expressed more concern about the disease and Democratic   
   voters have largely followed suit.”   
      
   Last fall, an ABC News/Washington Post poll found that the increase in   
   infections caused by the delta variant surge resulted in a jump in   
   perceived risk of catching the virus, from 29% in late June to 47% in   
   September. However, only 39% expressed worries about the consequences of   
   infection.   
      
   Political partisanship influenced pandemic-related health decisions,   
   beliefs and behavior, including “one's attitude towards public health   
   measures — like masking — became a signifier of political and cultural   
   identity,” Adrian Bardon, a professor of philosophy at Wake Forest   
   University explained.   
      
      
   While most states imposed restrictions on gatherings and businesses,   
   issuing stay-at-home orders and masking mandates, in an effort to curb   
   the spread of infections, a number of states moved to ease restrictions   
   and masking requirements soon after the first wave abated in 2020.   
      
   Eleven states — all of which are led by Republican governors — never   
   issued a statewide masking mandate.   
      
   These restrictions, along with the masks and vaccine mandates, had made a   
   significant difference in protecting people from infections, Peter   
   Jacobson, professor emeritus of health law and policy at the University   
   of Michigan School of Public Health, told ABC News.   
      
   “In easing these restrictions earlier, more people were going to be   
   exposed,” Jacobson said. “The blue states took this entire outbreak more   
   seriously… You can't underestimate the messages that were being sent to   
   the public.”   
      
   Tens of millions of Americans remain unvaccinated   
      
   A November 2021 study published in the National Institute of Medicine’s   
   National Library of Medicine, found that “politicization has undoubtedly   
   contributed to hesitancy toward uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine.”   
      
   The red and blue gap in COVID-19 vaccination totals was preceded and   
   predicted by a red and blue gap in belief in the seriousness of the   
   incipient pandemic, Bardon said.   
      
   Since the introduction of the vaccine drive, over 250 million Americans   
   have received a shot — representing about 76.8% of the total population,   
   according to federal data. However, despite concerted efforts to convince   
   those most hesitant, 57 million eligible Americans over the age of five   
   remain completely unvaccinated.   
   MORE: Cornell University reports indications of 'substantial prevalence'   
   of COVID-19 on campus   
      
   Despite the fact that the former President Trump created Operation Warp   
   Speed, which developed COVID-19 vaccines at a record pace, and endorsed   
   the use of the vaccine, alongside Republican allies like Florida Gov. Ron   
   DeSantis, a large swath of Americans have still refused the shots.   
      
   “The irony of course, is that the Trump administration was responsible   
   for fighting for this pandemic funding, in fast-tracking the vaccine   
   process that has really saved a lot of lives,” Jacobson said.   
      
   However, while Trump and some of his allies have encouraged vaccination,   
   many still decried mandates.   
      
   According to polling from KFF, as of February 2022, just 56% of   
   Republicans are vaccinated, as compared to 70% of Independents, and 92%   
   of Democrats. In addition, a third of Republicans reported that they   
   definitely would not get vaccinated.   
      
   White plastic tombstone-shaped pieces are displayed as part of a   
   temporary memorial to some of Miami's vi...   
   Lynne Sladky/AP, FILE   
      
   Experts have stressed repeatedly that the global and domestic vaccination   
   drive ultimately saved the lives of millions of people.   
      
   In the absence of a vaccination program, an analysis from the   
   Commonwealth Fund found that there would have been approximately 1.1   
   million additional COVID-19 deaths and more than 10.3 million additional   
   COVID-19 hospitalizations in the U.S. by November 2021.   
      
   Federal data also shows that in January, unvaccinated adults were nine   
   times more likely to die of COVID-19, compared to vaccinated individuals,   
   and six times more likely to require hospitalization.   
      
   Additionally, unvaccinated adults were about 21 times more likely to die   
   of COVID-19 in January, and 12 times more likely to require   
   hospitalization, compared to fully vaccinated and boosted adults.   
      
   Access and disparities also a persistent issue   
      
   Experts stress the importance of other factors at play, besides politics,   
   to also explain the higher COVID-19 death toll in red states as compared   
   to blue states.   
      
   “Democrats and Republicans tend to live in different kinds of areas.   
   Republicans are more likely to live in more sparsely populated areas,   
   where diseases may not spread as easily, but health facilities also tend   
   to be farther away,” Masket said.   
      
   Lack of access to transportation, proper to pharmacies, all have major   
   consequences for public health, Jacobson added.   
      
   “All relevant problems begin with access: access to treatment, access to   
   pharmaceuticals. These issues were exacerbated in the pandemic,” Jacobson   
   said. “People in some communities don't even have transportation to   
   [healthcare] facilities.”   
   Francisco Arechiga gets a COVID-19 vaccination from EMT Brandon Jaramillo   
   at a pop up clinic in Arleta, Cal...   
   Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images, FILE   
      
   According to ABC News' analysis last summer of pharmacy locations across   
   the country, there are 150 counties where there is no pharmacy, and   
   nearly 4.8 million people live in a county where there's only one   
   pharmacy for every 10,000 residents or more.   
      
   Based on Census data, there are far fewer pharmacies per person —   
   especially chain pharmacies — in rural parts of the country compared to   
   urban areas.   
      
   In addition, the inequities, with respect to access, underscore the   
   racial gap prevalent throughout the country, in both rural and urban   
   areas, with more pharmacies in whiter and wealthier neighborhoods per   
   person than in poorer, predominantly nonwhite neighborhoods.   
      
   Persisting disparities throughout the pandemic have also resulted in a   
   higher likelihood of death from COVID-19 for Black and brown Americans.   
      
   According to federal data, adjusted for age and population, the   
   likelihood of death because of COVID-19, for Black, Asian, Latino and   
   Native American people is about one to two times higher, compared to   
   White Americans.   
   MORE: With 4th COVID-19 vaccine doses looming, experts say not so fast   
      
   Although some minority communities initially lagged behind in the   
   nation’s vaccination efforts, the rates of Black and Brown Americans have   
   significantly caught up proportionally to their respective populations.   
      
   However, Black and brown Americans are still behind in the national   
   booster drive, with only 40.3% of eligible Hispanic/Latino Americans   
   boosted, and 43.6% of eligible Black Americans boosted.   
      
   Comparatively, about 54.4% of White Americans have received their   
   booster, while Asian Americans lead every race/ethnicity group, with 60%   
   of the eligible population boosted.   
      
      
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