Some people are fond of telling me the number of people that they know who have been vaccinated and gotten Covid 19. I remind them that the vaccines were designed to keep people out of the hospital and out of the morgue. Here is a recent study from JAMA which show that those who were vaccinated and boosted had the lowest hospitalization rate. The study period was from January of 2021 through March of 2022. We hope that the new bivalent Covid 19 vaccine will continue and even improve this success. I had mine today. While the WHO says that Covid 19 is on the wane it is still killing hundreds of Americans daily. 80% are 65 and older.
Here is a summary and a link to the original article.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2796235
COVID-19-Associated Hospitalizations
Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Adults 18 Years or Older
in 13 US States, January 2021 to April 2022
Fiona P. Havers, MD, MHS; Huong Pham, MPH; Christopher A. Taylor, PhD; Michael Whitaker, MPH; Kadam Patel, MPH; Onika Anglin, MPH;
Anita K. Kambhampati, MPH; Jennifer Milucky, MSPH; Elizabeth Zell, MStat; Heidi L. Moline, MD, MPH; Shua J. Chai, MD, MPH; Pam Daily Kirley, MPH;
Nisha B. Alden, MPH; Isaac Armistead, MD, MPH; Kimberly Yousey-Hindes, MPH, CPH; James Meek, MPH; Kyle P. Openo, DrPH; Evan J. Anderson, MD;
Libby Reeg, MPH; Alexander Kohrman, MPH; Ruth Lynfield, MD; Kathryn Como-Sabetti, MPH; Elizabeth M. Davis, MA; Cory Cline, MPH;
Alison Muse, MPH; Grant Barney, MPH; Sophrena Bushey, MHS; Christina B. Felsen, MPH; Laurie M. Billing, MPH; Eli Shiltz, MPH;
Melissa Sutton, MD, MPH; Nasreen Abdullah, MD, MPH; H. Keipp Talbot, MD, MPH; William Schaffner, MD; Mary Hill, MPH; Andrea George, MPH;
Aron J. Hall, DVM, MSPH; Stephanie R. Bialek, MD, MPH; Neil C. Murthy, MD; Bhavini Patel Murthy, MD; Meredith McMorrow, MD, MPH
IMPORTANCE Understanding risk factors for hospitalization in vaccinated persons and the
association of COVID-19 vaccines with hospitalization rates is critical for public health efforts
to control COVID-19.
OBJECTIVE To determine characteristics of COVID-19–associated hospitalizations among
vaccinated persons and comparative hospitalization rates in unvaccinated and vaccinated
persons.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS From January 1, 2021, to April 30, 2022, patients 18
years or older with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were identified from more
than 250 hospitals in the population-based COVID-19–Associated Hospitalization Surveillance
Network. State immunization information system data were linked to cases, and the
vaccination coverage data of the defined catchment population were used to compare
hospitalization rates in unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals. Vaccinated and
unvaccinated patient characteristics were compared in a representative sample with detailed
medical record review; unweighted case counts and weighted percentages were calculated.
EXPOSURES Laboratory-confirmed COVID-19–associated hospitalization, defined as a positive
SARS-CoV-2 test result within 14 days before or during hospitalization.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES COVID-19–associated hospitalization rates among
vaccinated vs unvaccinated persons and factors associated with COVID-19–associated
hospitalization in vaccinated persons were assessed.
RESULTS Using representative data from 192 509 hospitalizations (see Table 1 for
demographic information), monthly COVID-19–associated hospitalization rates ranged from
3.5 times to 17.7 times higher in unvaccinated persons than vaccinated persons regardless of
booster dose status. From January to April 2022, when the Omicron variant was
predominant, hospitalization rates were 10.5 times higher in unvaccinated persons and 2.5
times higher in vaccinated persons with no booster dose, respectively, compared with those
who had received a booster dose. Among sampled cases, vaccinated hospitalized patients
with COVID-19 were older than those who were unvaccinated (median [IQR] age, 70 [58-80]
years vs 58 [46-70] years, respectively; P < .001) and more likely to have 3 or more
underlying medical conditions (1926 [77.8%] vs 4124 [51.6%], respectively; P < .001).
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this cross-sectional study of US adults hospitalized with
COVID-19, unvaccinated adults were more likely to be hospitalized compared with vaccinated
adults; hospitalization rates were lowest in those who had received a booster dose.
Hospitalized vaccinated persons were older and more likely to have 3 or more underlying
medical conditions and be long-term care facility residents compared with hospitalized
unvaccinated persons. The study results suggest that clinicians and public health
practitioners should continue to promote vaccination with all recommended doses for
eligible persons.
JAMA Intern Med. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2022.4299
Published online September 8, 2022.
Supplemental content
Author Affiliations: Author
affiliations are listed at the end of this
article.
Corresponding Author: Fiona
Havers, MD, MHS, 1600 Clifton Rd,
US Centers for Disease Control and
PrevenMS H24-6, Atlanta, GA 30329
(fhavers@cdc.gov).
Research
J
