Majority Of Pennsylvania's COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations And Deaths In 2021 Among Unvaccinated
By: KDKA-TV News Staff
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Heading into the third year of the pandemic, about 75 percent of Pennsylvanian adults are fully vaccinated, but most of the people who are dying or hospitalized are not.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health said data from 2021 and the first four days of 2022 shows that unvaccinated people or those not fully vaccinated accounted for 78 percent of cases, 85 percent of hospitalizations and 84 percent of deaths.
"The odds are clearly stacked in favor of people who are vaccinated," Acting Health Secretary Keara Klinepeter said. "We also know that vaccine boosters provide a greater level of protection from severe illness and death. That's why we strongly recommend everyone 12 and older to get a booster dose now."
COVID-19 hospitalizations are continuing to rise in Pennsylvania, though not as sharply as previous weeks. The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 on Monday was 3.8 percent higher than last week, the Health Department said.
The state averaged 25,417 new cases a day last week, also a slight increase.
The Allegheny County Health Department also released its weekly COVID-19 data on Tuesday. It reported 22,326 cases from Jan. 9-15 and 38 more deaths.
