Vaccines protect against the most severe Covid outcomes

Plus: German lawmakers vote to lift Covid restrictions

At this point, it’s been well-established that mRNA vaccines protect against hospitalization and severe Covid, while also significantly reducing the risk of infection. But a new study from the CDC investigated how well those vaccines protect against both the necessity of a ventilator and death among those patients who do get hospitalized. The research tracked patients hospitalized with Covid at 21 different hospitals in 18 states, and found vaccines to be 90% effective against the most severe outcomes. For those who’d received a booster dose, the vaccine was 94% effective. And for those people who had no chronic or immunocompromised conditions, vaccination was 98% effective. “The findings of this study indicate that Covid-19 vaccines provide strong protection against severe Covid-19 resulting in respiratory failure or in-hospital death,” the study authors write.

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What Else We Are Reading

• Getting COVID — even a mild case — increases diabetes risk, study finds (Kansas City Star)

• America’s Flu-Shot Problem Is Also Its Next COVID-Shot Problem (The Atlantic)

• A little biotech crows about its Covid-19 'one and done' PhIII (Endpoints News)