Analysis: COVID-19 Vaccines Could Have Prevented At Least 90,000 Deaths Since June   A new KFF analysis estimates that nationally more than 90,000 deaths from COVID-19 since June could have been prevented with vaccines. More than half of those preventable deaths occurred in September. The analysis examines data about COVID-19 deaths since safe, highly effective vaccines became widely available nationwide at no charge. It looks at the share of deaths among adults who were vaccinated and unvaccinated, adjusted based on the latest age-adjusted estimates for vaccine effectiveness from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.   The analysis also estimates that COVID-19 was the second-leading cause of death in September behind only heart disease, with an average of nearly 1,900 deaths per day reported. Prior to the widespread availability of vaccines earlier this year, COVID-19 was the leading cause of death for several months this winter before falling to eighth in July. Since then, cases and deaths have risen due to the more infectious Delta variant, insufficient vaccination rates, and a reduction in social-distancing measures. The analysis is available on the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker, an online information hub dedicated to monitoring and assessing the performance of the U.S. health system.

 

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CONTACT: Craig Palosky | (202) 654-1369 | cpalosky@kff.org

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