Vaccination is politicized by many. But the figures from the RKI show in black and white what immunization really brings.
Berlin – The federal government actually wanted to vaccinate 80 percent of the population against Corona at least once by the end of January. But it is already clear: this is no longer possible. Up to and including Sunday, 75.8 percent of people in Germany have been vaccinated at least once. The number of first vaccinations is currently declining, and many remain skeptical – even though the data clearly show how much the vaccination really brings.
The Federal Government’s expert council calls for better education and communication on the pandemic
Politicians themselves are partly responsible for the low vaccination rate. The expert council of the federal government is therefore now calling for better public communication on the pandemic from the government, as can be seen from a statement on Monday. In order to enable people to behave correctly, “rapid, evidence-based, target group and user-specific risk and health communication is essential,” the committee continued. Scientific evidence must simply be explained and translated into recommendations for action. False and disinformation should be identified and refuted, the expert council demands.
Portugal, for example, is at the forefront worldwide with a vaccination rate of around 90 percent. In the vaccinable population – i.e. everyone over the age of twelve – even 98 percent are vaccinated. Experts see various reasons for the successful vaccination campaign in the country. For example the fact that a military general and not a politician was responsible for the vaccination campaign. The small state in Western Europe also made a conscious investment in the health education of its population in 2014 – with success. Communication during the pandemic was also much more structured in Portugal than in Germany. Vaccination now seems politicized for many people in Germany. But what it really brings from a health point of view is shown in black and white by the numbers. For example, the latest data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) from the current weekly report.
RKI numbers prove: Risk of ending up in intensive care reduced by vaccination
“More and more vaccinated people are in the hospital” – these are the words of some skeptics, who want to stir up a spirit against vaccination. Statistically, the statement is correct – and it is not surprising, because more and more people in the population are vaccinated. No vaccine is 100 percent effective, so so-called vaccine breakthroughs can be expected. The RKI defines cases in which a fully vaccinated person falls ill with corona as a vaccination breakthrough. So it is only logical that as the vaccination rate increases, so does the number of vaccine breakthroughs. But the decisive factor is the number of people with severe courses. A graphic shows the principle again clearly:
The RKI has been collecting data on vaccination breakthroughs since February 1, 2021. A look at the data from the last four weeks shows that an above-average number of unvaccinated people end up in intensive care units because of Corona, even though they only make up around a quarter of the population. If the vaccination were useless, around a quarter of the unvaccinated and three quarters of the vaccinated would be in German intensive care units – according to the distribution in the total population. However, a look at the numbers reveals that the vaccination significantly reduces the risk of coming to the intensive care unit due to corona. Because about three quarters of the corona patients in the intensive care units are not vaccinated, only a quarter are vaccinated. Or in absolute numbers: According to the RKI, 631 Covid cases were cared for in intensive care units within the last four weeks, 481 of which were unvaccinated (around 76 percent), 150 cases were vaccinated and/or boosted (around 23 percent together).
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