Washoe County is now back in the low range for the risk of contracting COVID-19. As reported yesterday, the drop from medium to low was expected today.
The ratings are part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s community risk criteria.
District Health Officer Kevin Dick this week said those suffering severe illness and death from COVID-19 continue to primarily be those who are unvaccinated.
There have been seven COVID-related deaths in Washoe County in the past 30 days.
Dick said the number of deaths and hospitalizations in the community are much lower largely as a result of the many people who have been vaccinated.
Scientific American in June explained death rates among the vaccinated versus the unvaccinated. The unvaccinated had eight times the death rate compared with those who only had the initial series of vaccinations.
Here is how Scientific American reported the situation:
“It is also important to consider the ages of those who are dying. People 65 and older make up the group that is both the most likely to be vaccinated (and boosted) and the most likely to die of COVID. (Being older is one of the biggest risk factors for severe COVID because the immune system weakens with age.) So when you separate the age groups, it becomes even clearer that vaccination reduces the risk of death. And because immune protection from vaccination wanes with time, and because some older people do not mount a good immune response to the primary series, being boosted reduces that risk even further.”
This Is Reno in January reported that the unvaccianted were 10 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than those who are vaccinated. That number at the time was based on CDC data.
“The death rate among vaccinated versus unvaccinated will continue to evolve,” we reported at the time.
