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Here's What Americans Think The U.S. Should Do About Ebola

Here's What Americans Think The U.S. Should Do About Ebola
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Health workers carry load the body of a woman that they suspect died from the Ebola virus, onto a truck in front of a makeshift shop in an area known as Clara Town in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014. A surge in Ebola infections in Liberia is driving a spiraling outbreak in West Africa that is increasingly putting health workers at risk as they struggle to treat an overwhelming number of patients. A higher proportion of health workers has been infected in this outbreak than in any previous one. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
Health workers carry load the body of a woman that they suspect died from the Ebola virus, onto a truck in front of a makeshift shop in an area known as Clara Town in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014. A surge in Ebola infections in Liberia is driving a spiraling outbreak in West Africa that is increasingly putting health workers at risk as they struggle to treat an overwhelming number of patients. A higher proportion of health workers has been infected in this outbreak than in any previous one. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)

President Barack Obama on Tuesday announced that the U.S. would be sending 3,000 American military personnel to West Africa to help fight the Ebola outbreak there. At the same time, senators at a joint hearing of a health committee and an appropriations subcommittee on Capitol Hill were discussing what the U.S. could do to help control the epidemic.

A new HuffPost/YouGov poll finds that Americans, too, think the U.S. should act to stop the spread of Ebola in West Africa, though their level of support for different types of aid varies greatly.

A majority of Americans -- 53 percent -- said the U.S. has a moral obligation to help fight the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, while 23 percent said it does not. Near equal percentages of Democrats, Republicans, and independents said the U.S. has a moral responsibility to act.

When presented with specific types of aid the U.S. could provide, Americans showed much stronger support for medical aid than any other type of assistance. Eighty-two percent of respondents said the U.S. should send medical supplies to West Africa, while 8 percent disagreed.

Sending American medical personnel to train and assist doctors received the next highest level of support, with 62 percent of respondents supporting the idea and 18 percent opposing it. Sixty percent of respondents said the U.S. should invest more money in Ebola research, compared with 17 percent who said the U.S. should not.

Americans were more divided about whether the U.S. should send financial aid to West Africa. Forty-two percent expressed support for the idea, compared with 31 percent who said they opposed it.

Only 17 percent of Americans support sending American troops to help enforce quarantines of Ebola patients, while 58 percent said they opposed doing that. Quarantines have been used in both Liberia and Sierra Leone to try to contain the spread of the outbreak, but both countries have struggled to enforce them.

Obama said during his speech on Tuesday that U.S. military personnel would be sent to Africa to help train health care workers, erect new health care facilities, and provide logistical support -- a form of assistance not asked about in the HuffPost/YouGov poll.

The HuffPost/YouGov poll was conducted Sept. 13 to Sept. 15 among 1,000 U.S. adults using a sample selected from YouGov's opt-in online panel to match the demographics and other characteristics of the adult U.S. population. Factors considered include age, race, gender, education, employment, income, marital status, number of children, voter registration, time and location of Internet access, interest in politics, religion and church attendance.

The Huffington Post has teamed up with YouGov to conduct daily opinion polls. You can learn more about this project and take part in YouGov's nationally representative opinion polling. Data from all HuffPost/YouGov polls can be found here.

Before You Go

John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberia security forces patrol in the West Point area, as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberia security forces blockade an area around the West Point Ebola center as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in the city of Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberian security officers dressed in riot gear, right, control a crowed of people in the West Point area, as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberia security forces, blockade an area around the West Point Ebola center as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in city Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberia security forces in riot gear, blockade an area near the West Point Ebola center as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in the city of Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents.(AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian riot policemen enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Family members of West Point district commissioner Miata Flowers flee the slum while being escorted by the Ebola Task Force on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military was called in to extract the commissioner and her family members from the seaside slum after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The military also began enforcing a quarrantine on West Point, a congested slum of 75,000, fearing a spread of the epidemic. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Local residents protest as Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The government ordered the quarantine of West Point, a congested seaside town of 75,000, on Wednesday, in an effort to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for allowing a holding center for suspected Ebola patients to be set up in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
People gather as Liberian security forces walk past in the West Point area, as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberia security forces dressed in riot gear, left, control a crowd of people in the West Point area, as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A Liberian security officer patrols in the West Point area, as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Liberian soldiers patrol in the West Point area as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents. (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Residents from an area close to the West Point Ebola center, protest as they are not allowed to enter the area leading to their homes, after Liberia security forces blocked roads, as the government clamps down on the movement of people to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus in the city of Monrovia, Liberia, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2014. Security forces deployed Wednesday to enforce a quarantine around a slum in the Liberian capital, stepping up the governmentâs fight to stop the spread of Ebola and unnerving residents.(AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberia's police chief Clanence Massaquoi (3L) speaks to residents of the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. A quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Residents watch as Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Residents watch as Liberian security forces, part of the country's Ebola Task Force, enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The quarantine of West Point, a congested favella of 75,000 people, began Wednesday, as the government tries to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. A mob overran and closed an Ebola isolation ward there on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The government ordered the quarantine of West Point, a congested seaside town of 75,000, on Wednesday, in an effort to stop the spread of the virus in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for allowing a holding center for suspected Ebola patients to be set up in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Members of Liberia's Ebola Task Force ride in the back of a pickup as they enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
John Moore via Getty Images
MONROVIA, LIBERIA - AUGUST 20: Local residents protest as Liberia's Ebola Task Force enforce a quarantine on the West Point slum on August 20, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The military began enforcing a quarantine on West Point, a congested favela of 75,000, fearing a spread of the Ebola epidemic in the capital city. Liberian soldiers were also sent in to extract West Point Commissioner Miata Flowers and her family members after residents blamed the government for setting up a holding center for suspected Ebola patients in their community. A mob overran and closed the facility on August 16. The Ebola virus has killed more than 1,200 people in four African nations, more in Liberia than any other country. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
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