Nearly 97% of the 9,926 people with COVID-19 who were hospitalized in Colorado during the first six months of 2021 were either unvaccinated or only partially immunized, according to data released by the state health department.
The data, which further demonstrates the effectiveness of the shots, also shows that more than 96% of deaths related to COVID-19 during that same period occurred among people who were either had not received the vaccine or only had one shot.
“Vaccination is the best protection against COVID-19, including the delta variant,” a spokesperson with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said in an email. “We encourage all eligible Coloradans to get vaccinated as soon as possible. It is the easiest way to protect our friends, families and communities and to return to the lives we love.”
The agency encourages anyone not fully vaccinated to continue wearing a mask, physically distancing, washing their hands and limiting gatherings.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment on Monday released data to The Denver Post showing the vaccination status of people with COVID-19 who were hospitalized statewide.
But on Tuesday, the agency corrected its data, saying that, under U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, people who were only partially vaccinated when they tested positive for the virus should not be considered among the so-called “breakthrough” cases. Such cases occur when a person becomes infected with the coronavirus despite being inoculated.
Now, the state’s hospitalization and death data for those who were unvaccinated includes both people who had not yet received any vaccine and those individuals who were not at least 14 days away from their final shot. Of the people who had tested positive for COVID-19 when they were hospitalized between Jan. 1 and June 30, 96.9% were not fully vaccinated.
The Department of Public Health and Environment also provided more death data on Tuesday, showing that 96.1% of the 1,607 people who died with — but not necessarily due to — COVID-19 were not fully vaccinated.
That percentage is slightly higher — at 97.4% not fully vaccinated — among the 1,370 people who died in cases where COVID-19 has since been determined to be the underlying cause of death.
Nationally and in Colorado, cases of the coronavirus are increasing, particularly in states with low vaccination rates such as Arkansas and Missouri, as the more-transmissible delta variant and other strains become more widespread.
Colorado has experienced a decline in the number of people getting vaccinated in recent weeks. About 62% of all eligible people — everyone 12 and older — are fully vaccinated.
And in Mesa County, which has become a hotspot in Colorado for the delta variant, 88% of the 481 people hospitalized for the virus and 92% of the 8,479 cases so far this year have been among individuals that have not yet received a COVID-19 shot.
Only 42% of that county’s residents are considered fully immunized against the coronavirus, according to Mesa County Public Health.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, 7,116 people have died directly due to the virus in Colorado, according to state data.
Updated 6 p.m. July 20, 2021 This story has been updated after the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment informed The Denver Post it had provided incorrect data. The corrected data shows that, between Jan. 1 and June 30, 96.9% of the people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Colorado were not fully vaccinated and 96.1% of people who died with COVID-19 in the state were not fully vaccinated.