Most Americans believe COVID-19 leaked from Wuhan lab, support 'reparations' for cover-up, poll finds

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A new poll shows that Americans overwhelmingly believed that the coronavirus pandemic stemmed from a lab leak in Wuhan, China, and that the Chinese government subsequently lied about it.

The Ronald Reagan Institute’s 2021 National Defense Survey posed a number of questions related to China and its position in relation to the U.S., including one regarding the origins of COVID-19.

"When asked about the theory that the coronavirus was developed by scientists working at a lab in Wuhan and accidentally leaked, and that the Chinese government then lied about it, nearly three quarters (72%) of Americans believe it is likely, with 42% saying it is very likely," a report by the Reagan Institute said, discussing the poll results.

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Not only did the survey show that most participants believe the pandemic leaked from a Chinese lab, majorities of those from both parties and independents felt the same way. Of Republicans polled, 86% believed it was likely that COVID-19 leaked from a Wuhan lab, while 61% of Democrats and 67% of independents agreed.

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Additionally, majorities of all three groups agreed that China should face consequences if it is determined that it did cover up a lab leak.

"If the theory was proven, 76% of Americans think China should pay reparations to other nations as a penalty, including 82% of Republicans and 72% of both Independents and Democrats," the Reagan Institute said.

Security personnel gather near the entrance of the Wuhan Institute of Virology during a visit by the World Health Organization team in Wuhan in China's Hubei province on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021.  (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Another pandemic-related question had to do with public trust of health officials. Nearly half did not say they had faith in them.

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"Despite their prominence throughout the vaccination phase of the pandemic, only 56% of Americans report having a great deal or some confidence in public health officials, which down 10 points since February," said the organization's report.

This comes at a time when 81% of those polled are still worried about pandemics and 78% fear biological attacks on U.S. soil.