New CDC Study Shows Just How Big A COVID Risk The Unvaccinated Are Taking

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated a report on individuals ages 16 and older who have contracted COVID-19, revealing the latest figures on how many vaccinated vs unvaccinated people end up sick and hospitalized. As expected, unvaccinated individuals are far more likely to end up hospitalized with the respiratory disease.

The CDC report covers the COVID-19 infections and resulting hospitalizations that occurred in LA County, California, from May 1 through July 25. The updated figures show that while vaccinated individuals can still contract the virus, unvaccinated adults are more likely to get sick and far more likely to end up in the hospital.

During the aforementioned time period, the CDC reports that 43,127 COVID-19 cases occurred in Los Angeles County, of which 25.3-percent were in people who were fully vaccinated. The case numbers for partially vaccinated people ages 16 and older totaled only 3.3-percent of the figure, while 71.4-percent of cases were in unvaccinated people.

As of July 25, the CDC found that unvaccinated people were 4.9 times more likely to become infected with SARS-CoV-2 compared to vaccinated people, and that the unvaccinated were 29.2 times more likely to end up hospitalized from the infection. The SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant was the most common case of these infections last month.

The figures don't include infections in kids and young teens. The CDC points out that getting vaccinated remains the best protection against COVID-19; the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines remain freely available to anyone in the US who wants one.