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According to a study released Wednesday, infections, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 among fully vaccinated New Jerseyans were all extremely rare in the first four months of the vaccination campaign.
Only 0.06% of fully vaccinated New Jerseyans were infected with COVID-19, according to the Department of Health study.
This represents 1,319 “revolutionary cases” among more than 2.2 million people fully vaccinated between December 15 and April 23.
“The vaccines we have are not perfect, but they are pretty close,” Dr. Ed Lifshitz, medical director of the state’s health department, said in a briefing. “They are literally lifeguards.”
Of those groundbreaking cases, 14 have died, but only seven of the deaths have been attributed to the virus. In addition, 92 people with breakthrough cases were hospitalized, but only 30 of them were due to COVID-19, Lifshitz said.
All hospitalizations and deaths were in people aged 50 and over. Half of the deaths were from those 80 and over, Lifshitz said.
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The cases were all people who had received either a two-dose Moderna or Pfizer vaccine or a single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine and who had tested positive more than two weeks after their last injection.
While no vaccine is 100% effective, the three licensed in the United States have completely prevented hospitalizations and deaths from COVID in clinical trials.
The study “overwhelmingly shows that vaccines work,” said state health commissioner Judy Persichilli.
Another study by two researchers from the state’s largest hospital network – Hackensack Meridian Health – found 138 COVID-19 positive cases among 26,000 of its fully vaccinated health workers, Persichilli said.
None fell seriously ill.
The pace of vaccinations has slowed considerably over the past two months. As of Wednesday, about 4.4 million New Jerseyans were fully immunized, or about 65% of the adult population.
Revolutionary cases
- 1319 known infections out of 2.2 million.
- 92 hospitalized, including 30 linked to COVID-19.
- 14 deaths, including seven attributed to COVID-19.
Scott Fallon covers the environment for NorthJersey.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news on how the New Jersey environment affects your health and wellness, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: @newsfallon
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