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As of September 7, at least 11,440 people who had a breakthrough case have been hospitalized and another 2,674 people who had a breakthrough infection have died, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Of these figures, 25 percent of breakthrough hospitalizations and 21 percent of breakthrough deaths were among asymptomatic individuals, or their hospital admission or death was not related to COVID-19, although they tested positive for the coronavirus.
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While those over 65 continue to have the highest rates of vaccination, they also account for the greatest percentage of breakthrough-related hospitalizations and deaths—81 percent and 87 percent, respectively—suggesting that their decision to get the shot was not enough to prevent them from facing severe illness.
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Despite the unexpected threat the variant poses to vaccinated individuals, federal health officials are still calling on people to get the shot, especially since last week's study found that unvaccinated people are 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than those who have been vaccinated.
"Also, people who were not fully vaccinated [are] at about five times greater risk of becoming infected with COVID-19 than people who are fully vaccinated," a CDC spokesperson told Newsweek. "The findings show vaccines continue to provide strong protection against severe COVID-19 even though it provides less protection against the Delta variant than other variants of the virus."
