Government: "4th Dose Reduces Mortality Rate... COVID-19 May Become Endemic"

Research Results from Israel

A citizen is receiving a vaccine at a vaccination center.
Photo by Asia Economy

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Yeeun] As research shows that the mortality rate of those who received the 4th dose of the COVID-19 vaccine is lower than that of those who received the 3rd dose, health authorities have recommended vaccination for those aged 60 and above to prevent severe illness and death among the elderly.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) on the 28th, a comparative study on mortality rates after the 3rd and 4th doses conducted in Israel found that among those aged 60 and older, the mortality rate of the group that completed the 4th dose was lower than that of the group that completed the 3rd dose.

In the study, the mortality rate after the 4th dose compared to the mortality rate after the 3rd dose was 0.16 for those in their 60s, 0.28 for those in their 70s, and 0.20 for those aged 70 to 100, indicating a lower rate.

Forty days after vaccination, among 233,847 people who completed the 3rd dose, 232 deaths (0.099%) occurred, whereas during the same period, among 328,022 people who completed the 4th dose, 92 deaths (0.028%) were reported.

Meanwhile, as of midnight on the 28th, 2,915,306 people had participated in pre-booking for the 4th dose, recording a reservation rate of 21.2% of the population and 27.1% of the eligible group. Among those aged 60 and above, 1,367,745 people had completed the 4th dose, accounting for 10.0% of the population and 12.7% of the eligible group.

Kwon Geun-yong, head of the Vaccination Management Team at the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Headquarters, explained, "At the time of the 3rd dose, the necessity of vaccination was high, and the effect of preventing severe illness and death was very important and urgent, so the 3rd dose was strongly recommended to all adults."

He added, "On the other hand, the 4th dose targets those aged 60 and above, but the actively recommended age group is those aged 80 and above," and "the participation rate among the actively targeted group (80 and above) is relatively high."

Additionally, Park Young-jun, head of the Epidemiological Investigation Team at the CDCH, stated that while there is a possibility of COVID-19 becoming endemic in South Korea, more monitoring is needed to predict the timing.

Park emphasized, "When the outbreak occurs at a stable and predictable level, it is described as having become 'endemic.' Even if it becomes endemic, the risk does not disappear but remains, so continuous management is necessary."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.