Vaccinated adults 65 and older 94% less likely to be hospitalised with COVID-19, says US CDC

Fully vaccinated adults 65 years and older were 94% less likely to be hospitalised with COVID-19 than people of the same age who were not vaccinated, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC).

The new study, published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), showed that the risk of hospitalisation dropped significantly two weeks after receiving the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines.

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“These findings are encouraging and welcome news for the two-thirds of people aged 65 and up who are already fully vaccinated,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, MD, said in a statement. 

“COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective and these real-world findings confirm the benefits seen in clinical trials, preventing hospitalisations among those most vulnerable.”

To conduct its assessment, the CDC said that it collected hospitalisation data from two surveillance networks originally established to monitor serious influenza disease.

This study differentiates itself from recent studies out of Israel which yielded similar results, but only looked at the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine; this study represented both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna equally.

Even the partially vaccinated were 64% less likely to be hospitalised with COVID-19.

Nearly 40 per cent of adults in the United States are now fully vaccinated.

As India cautions people to wear masks even at home behind closed doors, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had released new guidelines on April 27, saying people who have been fully vaccinated in the country can stop wearing masks during many outdoor and indoor activities.

(With inputs from agencies)