The statistics for Coronavirus spread rate and lethality are now fairly well settled by Science. You can see them right here
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality
The US medical system has done a great job of caring for citizens when not overwhelmed, so the mortality rate nationwide is 5.9%
Per the CDC, the average fatlity rate for the Flu is .002%
SO, WITH THAT IN MIND LOOK AT THE TWO POLITICAL PARTIES AND EVEN INCLUDE INDEPENDENTS AND YOU SEE ALMOST UNIFORM AGREEMENT ON VIRUS TRANSMISSION/INFECTION RATES:
"88% of Americans know the coronavirus can be spread by touching surfaces where virus droplets land and that the droplets can remain contagious for a few hours or up to several days. There is no difference in awareness about how the coronavirus spreads between Democrats (88%), Republicans (87%) and independents (87%), likely because this information has remained outside contentious political discourse."
BUT WATCH THE SCIENCE AND BELIEF DIVERGE WHEN IT COMES TO MORTALITY . . . . AND MOST IMPORTANTLY LOOK AT THE TIMING:
"While more Americans realized the coronavirus was deadlier than the seasonal flu in mid-April (67%) compared with late March (60%), this trend toward greater knowledge did not hold among Republicans.
AND THEN LOOK AT THE IMPACT OF "NEWS'
"Beyond partisan affiliation and political ideology, news diet is a powerful predictor of how Americans view the lethality of the coronavirus. For example, the likelihood that a hypothetical politically moderate independent with a conservative news diet would incorrectly answer this question increased four percentage points between mid-March to mid-April, compared with decreases of seven points for the same individual with a mixed news diet and 19 points with a liberal news diet. "
TWO EXPLANATIONS OFFERED FOR THE DIVERGENCE, BOTH BAD
"First, Republican respondents may know the correct answer but provide the incorrect answer to demonstrate their support for the Trump administration or because they just tend to view national conditions more positively when a Republican is president. In survey research, this is called expressive responding or partisan cheerleading. The other explanation is that debunking misinformation is difficult once believed.
AGAIN, THE SCIENCE IS 5.9% MORTALITY RATE VERSUS .002% FOR FLU
JOHNS HOPKINS
