Israel has been at the forefront of vaccination rollouts for adults and teenagers, pioneered a vaccine passport and, in recent months, has spearheaded the use of booster shots.
Now, a person is not considered fully vaccinated in Israel until they have received a third dose of the vaccine, once they are eligible for it.
More than three months on, Israeli health officials say the data is clear: Booster shots helped bring down the fourth wave of the virus that swept the country in August and September.
At its peak, that wave saw more than 8,000 new Covid-19 cases per day, and more than 500 people hospitalized at a time in serious condition.
The current seven-day average is running at between 450 and 500 cases a day, and there are 129 people hospitalized in serious condition with the virus.
The data highlights stark differences between those with the vaccine — and the booster — and those without: On many days over the past month, more than 75% of positive cases were among the unvaccinated, according to data from the health ministry.
Among those hospitalized with Covid-19 it is even clearer: Israeli officials say in October the rate of people over the age of 60 in serious condition who had only had two doses of the vaccine was 5 times that of those with three shots.
And although the caseload has declined overall since then, the differences remain: On Sunday, there were four times as many people over the age of 60 in serious condition who had only had two shots, compared to those considered fully vaccinated with three doses, according to the health ministry.
Lessons from Israel
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has cited such data as a reason why he thinks it will soon be recommended that everyone get…
Source : cnn
