COVID-19 vaccines saving older patients recently boosted
The large nationwide study shows boosters have had significant effects on risk of death, especially for aged care residents.
Older Australians who recently had a COVID-19 booster are 93% less likely to die from a SARS-CoV-2 infection compared with unvaccinated people, findings show.
Researchers from the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS) followed 3.8 million Australians — almost every person aged 65 and older — analysing COVID-19-related and other causes of death in 2022.
In each Omicron wave, researchers found a recent vaccine was highly effective at preventing death in people over 65, but that waned over time.
During the first Omicron wave, vaccine effectiveness peaked at 93%, three months after a third COVID-19 vaccine dose for people over 65, and decreased to 63% for those who had a third dose more than six months ago.
