Most COVID-19 Breakthrough Cases Involve Seniors
Most fully vaccinated people who reported a breakthrough case of COVID-19 were aged 65 and older, according to The Hill.
The numbers: “Almost 70% of fully vaccinated patients admitted to hospitals with confirmed COVID-19 were aged 65 and older, making up a ‘disproportionately large share’ of breakthrough hospitalizations. Ten percent of breakthrough hospitalizations occurred among those younger than 50, and one-fifth occurred among those aged 50 to 64.”
Vaxxed vs. unvaxxed: Unvaccinated COVID-19 hospital patients were generally younger. More than 40% of unvaccinated COVID-19 patients in the hospital were younger than 50, while 30% were aged 50 to 64. Fully vaccinated individuals also spent less time in the hospital on average than unvaccinated individuals and were less likely to have respiratory complications; in fact, many may have been admitted to the hospital for reasons unrelated to COVID-19.
The big picture: COVID-19 is still vastly more likely to send unvaccinated people to the hospital; while 44% of the U.S. population was unvaccinated by the end of September, unvaccinated people accounted for 85% of all COVID-19 hospitalizations in the four-month period ending that month.
Learn more: Check out the NAM and The Manufacturing Institute’s This Is Our Shot initiative to find out how you can protect yourself and the people you care about from COVID-19.