Vaccinated people now make majority of Covid deaths in US: Report

In a startling revelation, a Washington Post analysis has found that more vaccinated people are now dying of the Covid disease and 58 per cent of coronavirus deaths in August in the US "were people who were vaccinated or boosted".

For the first time since the beginning of the pandemic in early 2020, a majority of Americans dying from Covid were at least partially vaccinated, according to the new analysis of federal and state data.

"In September 2021, vaccinated people made up just 23 per cent of coronavirus fatalities. In January and February this year, it was up to 42 per cent," the report mentioned.

 

The death among vaccinated people is increasing due to waning efficacy of Covid vaccines and "increasingly contagious strains of the virus being spread to elderly and immunocompromised people" among those who have taken at least one vaccine dose.

"We can no longer say this is a pandemic of the unvaccinated," said Kaiser Family Foundation vice president Cynthia Cox, who conducted the analysis on behalf of the Washington Post.

Outgoing White House Chief Medical Adviser, Anthony Fauci has emphasised the safety and efficacy of the approved Covid vaccines in preventing severe illness and deaths, encouraging people to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible.

He said that coronavirus vaccine effectiveness wanes over time and the disease shouldn't be compared to other vaccine-treatable illnesses because of new emerging variants.

"My message, and my final message, maybe the final message I give you from this podium, is that please, for your own safety, for that of your family, get your updated Covid-19 shot as soon as you're eligible to protect yourself, your family and your community," Fauci said.

"I urge you to visit vaccine.gov to find a location where you can easily get an updated vaccine, and please do it as soon as possible."

Older people were always especially vulnerable and now make up a higher proportion of Covid fatalities than ever before in the pandemic, reports Scientific American.

Today in the US, about 335 people will die from Covid -- a disease for which there are highly effective vaccines, treatments and precautions, it added.

"Covid deaths among people age 65 and older more than doubled between April and July this year, rising by 125 per cent," according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

The World Health Organization reported a nearly 90 per cent drop in recent Covid-19 deaths globally compared to nine months ago, but still urged vigilance against the pandemic as new variants continue to rise.

Overall, the WHO has reported 629 million cases and 6.5 million deaths linked to the pandemic.

--IANS

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