Teen vaccination cut COVID-19 cases by 37% in California, new data show

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

 

JAMA Network Open has published a new study showing that, from April 1, 2020, to February 27, 2023, in California, an estimated 146,210 COVID-19 cases were averted by vaccination in teens aged 12 to 15 years, representing a 37% reduction.

 

Researchers also estimated that 230,134 cases were averted in kids aged 5 to 11 years, a 24% reduction. 

 

...

Biggest reduction in teens 

From April 2020 to February 2023, California recorded 3,913,063 pediatric COVID-19 cases and 12,740 hospitalizations. During those times, statewide vaccine coverage reached 53.5% among adolescents aged 12 to 15 years, 34.8% among children aged 5 to 11 years, and 7.9% among those aged 6 to 59 months.

 

(more)

 

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/teen-vaccination-cut-covid-19-cases-37-california-new-data-show

 

 

 

Conclusions and Relevance  The findings of this case series analysis of 3 913 063 cases suggest reduced pediatric SARS-CoV-2 transmission following immunization. These results support the use of COVID-19 vaccines to reduce COVID-19 incidence and hospitalization in pediatric populations.

...

Descriptive Results

Between April 1, 2020, and February 27, 2023, a total of 3 913 063 COVID-19 cases were reported in California among individuals aged 18 years or younger. Of these, 47 174 cases (1.2%) were among children younger than 6 months, 517 447 (13.2%) in children aged 6 to 59 months, 1 590 806 (40.7%) in children aged 5 to 11 years, and 1 511 690 (38.6%) in adolescents aged 12 to 15 years. A total of 12 740 hospitalizations were reported: 1443 (11.3%) were among children younger than 6 months, 3428 (26.9%) in children aged 6 to 59 months, 2536 (19.9%) in children aged 5 to 11 years, and 3921 (30.8%) in adolescents aged 12 to 15 years.

...

Prior work has similarly reported a high impact of widespread administration of mRNA vaccines in adult populations. In California, COVID-19 vaccines were estimated to avert more than 1.5 million cases, 72 000 hospitalizations, and 19 000 deaths statewide during the first 10 months of vaccination (through October 16, 2021).¹⁷ In the US, each 10% increase in vaccination coverage among individuals aged 18 years or older at the county level was associated with an 8% reduction in mortality and a 7% reduction in incidence.¹⁸

 

(more)

 

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2817868

 

 

[AreYouGerman]

lol

[stoner]

how many teens actually died of covid ? doesn't say.

 

also worthy of note. the vaccine seemed to do nothing for young children yet it was pushed hard for them to get. looks like that the younger you go with age the less effective the vaccine was as well. to the point where it was non existent in toddlers. 

 

No evidence of reductions in COVID-19 cases statewide were found among children aged 6 to 59 months

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Not quite.... The forum has rules limiting the amount of content that can be quoted in a single post, so I couldn't quote all of the pertinent details from the news article and study in my OP post above.

 

If you had read the full news article linked above, you would have found the following re the youngest age group in California and how they benefited from COVID vaccination:

 

"Though there was no evidence in case reduction in the youngest kids, vaccination prevented an estimated 168 hospitalizations among children aged 6 to 59 months during the 225-day evaluation period." The study said that was a reduction of 24.4% because of the vaccinations in that age group.

 

And if you would have read the study linked above, you would have seen the authors explain that COVID vaccinations were only approved in the U.S. for children ages 6 months to 59 months last and long after the other youngster population groups, meaning few in that group were vaccinated during the period of the study, limiting the potential impact.

 

"On May 10, 2021, the first mRNA COVID-19 vaccine was approved for use in adolescents aged 12 to 15 years. Vaccines were subsequently approved for children aged 5 to 11 years on October 29, 2021, and for children aged 6 to 59 months on June 17, 2022 (Figure 1).^{2" [emphasis added]}

 

The study noted that in part because of that, at the time of the study, vaccination coverage in California among the various youngster age groups was 53.5% among adolescents aged 12 to 15 years, 34.8% among children aged 5 to 11 years, but only 7.9% among those aged 6 to 59 months, because of the later start.

 

The study authors also wrote: "The postvaccine evaluation period for this [youngest] age group did not include a surge in COVID-19 cases as it did for the other age groups," potentially limiting their ability to detect case reductions.

 

And they noted that the study's evaluation period for the youngest age came more during the Omicron variant period, when the original version of COVID vaccines began to have less effectiveness in preventing infections compared to that for the prior variants.

 

So there were multiple reasons for them not finding a statistical reduction in COVID cases for the youngest age group (low vaccination rate, lack of a COVID surge during their evaluation period, etc., and the vaccine not benefiting them was NOT among them, especially given that they did find a 24% reduction in COVID hospitalizations for them.

 

And for those here who often like to falsely claim that children don't have any risk from COVID, the study reported that up through February 2023 in California, there were 1443 COVID hospitalizations among children younger than 6 months.

 

 

 

[Robert Paulson]

Who are you going to believe, us or your lying eyes. 

[Robert Paulson]

I always wonder if the vaccine is so great why are so few people getting boosted

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Here's a major reason:

Misinformation and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy

2023 Jan 4

 

"COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has emerged as a major public health challenge. Although medical and scientific misinformation has been known to fuel vaccine hesitancy in the past, misinformation surrounding COVID-19 seems to be rampant, and increasing evidence suggests that it is contributing to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy today."

 

"During the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-vaccine beliefs have been at an all-time high, and vaccine hesitancy has become a major threat to public health [1]. The World Health Organization has labeled the increased virulence of misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic an “infodemic” "

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9659512/

 

And because the COVID death and hospitalization numbers have in fact lessened from what they were earlier in the pandemic, leading people to wrongly believe that they no longer are at risk and thus in need of vaccination.

 

Almost 1,000 people per week in the U.S. were dying of COVID until recently, and nearly 100 per week in the UK, as reported in news threads here in this forum. So the risk remains, especially -- but not exclusively -- for older people and those with chronic conditions.

 

[stoner]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

And if you would have read the study linked above, you would have seen the authors explain that COVID vaccinations were only approved in the U.S. for children ages 6 months to 59 months last and long after the other youngster population groups, meaning few in that group were vaccinated during the period of the study, limiting the potential impact.

 

i did read it. there was enough given the vaccine to have a pretty good idea. stats clearly show that children were the least at risk group.

 

the impact of the lockdown is far greater to children than covid ever was. lots of information out there now to show exactly how harmful the lockdowns were to children. 

[stoner]

Just now, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

and vaccine hesitancy has become a major threat to public health

 

but it really hasn't though. the pandemic is long over. even if you 4x the death numbers its a fraction of the human population. pretty good if you ask me. yes i know millions died but approx 150k humans die every single day.

 

the world has moved on and is much more educated for future happenings. 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

More than 1,600 COVID deaths of adolescents (ages 0-17) in the U.S. up through June 2023:

 

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1191568/reported-deaths-from-covid-by-age-us/

 

[stoner]

2 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

More than 1,600 COVID deaths of adolescents (ages 0-17) in the U.S. up through June 2023:

 

approx 20k adolescents die each year in america. so that would be about 60k in the same time frame as 1600 from covid. 

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Many adolescent deaths occur from causes that cannot necessarily be prevented by modern medicine -- suicides, traffic crashes, gun violence, cancers, etc.

 

Others, in the case of COVID, often could have been prevented, especially with the arrival of COVID vaccines that greatly reduce the risk of COVID hospitalization and death for those who choose to get vaccinated -- as cited in the OP study above.

 

 

 

[Robert Paulson]

Did anyone answer my question? If we have this amazing safe and effective vaccines that saving all these lives, why are so few taking it?