Fourth vaccine reduces COVID-19 deaths by 78% - study

232 coronavirus-related deaths were recorded in people who did not receive the fourth vaccine, but only 92 deaths were recorded in those who had.

The fourth coronavirus vaccine resulted in a 78% decrease in COVID-19 related deaths in adults aged 60-100, according to a new study by Clalit Health Services.

The study, conducted by Clalit, Sapir College and Ben-gurion University of the Negev, examined the effect the second booster shot had on mortality rates of the population eligible to receive it in Israel. The research was led by Dr. Ronen Arbel, a health outcomes researcher at Clalit Health Services and Sapir College. The paper is currently awaiting peer review.

At the time of its introduction, the fourth vaccine was controversial due to a lack of epidemiological and large-scale clinical evidence on the efficacy of a second booster shot. As a result, uptake of it among eligible populations was significantly lower than it had been at the start of the first booster distribution.

However, the study’s authors are hoping that with the release of the new information in the study, showing that the fourth vaccine did significantly reduce COVID-19 related deaths, people who have been hesitant up until now will decide to be inoculated with a second booster shot.

The researchers examined data from all 563,465 Clalit Health Services members eligible for the fourth vaccine. The median age of the participants was 73 years old, and 53% of participants were female.

The study population was divided into two groups: those who had received a second booster shot and those who had only received the first one.

Participants were only grouped under the “second booster” category if at least seven days had passed since receiving the dose. If any participant contracted the virus within seven days of receiving the second booster, they were excluded from the study.

Out of the total number of people counted in the study, 58% (328,597) received the second booster shot within the 40-day period of January 10-February 20, 2022, when the research was conducted. Uptake was notably higher among participants with a higher socioeconomic status but lower within haredi (ultra-orthodox) and Arab populations, the researchers said.

However, the 78% reduction in mortality rates from the fourth vaccine was still lower than the 90% mortality-rate reduction in elderly populations during the Delta wave as a result of the third vaccine, the study showed.