RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The number of deaths and hospitalizations in Rio de Janeiro has dropped sharply. According to the 26th epidemiological bulletin presented Friday, July 2, by the municipal government, there was a 44% decrease in deaths in June compared to the previous month.
This decrease is believed to be the impact of the progress in Covid-19 vaccination.
From June 27 to July 1, the number of patients admitted to public and private hospitals decreased by 27.5%, from 1,002 patients to 726.
The bed occupancy rate dropped from 96% to 77%. The survey also shows that the wait time for vacancies in the public network has not exceeded 24 hours for three weeks.
“We were expecting a very harsh winter, with four times more hospitalizations and deaths than we have now. And the impact of the vaccine is clear, we are starting to see a very significant reduction in the number of cases, even though we are in the most dangerous month for the flu, a period of higher seasonality,” said the municipal health secretary Daniel Soranz in a press conference.
Given this scenario, there are areas in the city with a lower risk of contamination by Covid-19. Of the 33 administrative regions, five – Port Zone, Penha, Ilha do Governador, Santa Teresa, and Vigário Geral – returned to present a “moderate” index.
However, the Minister of Health stresses the importance of taking measures to prevent the disease, such as the mandatory use of masks, avoiding unnecessary exposures, and agglomerations due to the high level of transmission in large parts of the city.
IMMUNIZATION BALANCE
One of the highlighted effects of immunization is also the decrease in hospitalizations in the elderly population. People aged 60 or older represented less than half of the severe cases of Covid-19 in the city in May (39.4%) and June (36.2%) for the first time since the pandemic began. Among seniors aged 60 to 69, the rate dropped from 17.9 percent in May to 12.7 percent in June.
The vaccine is expected to have its greatest impact in the coming weeks, when the first dose is administered to all age groups over 40, according to Daniel Soranz. Most of those hospitalized for Covid-19 in Rio now are between 40 and 59 years old (45%).
“Vaccinating this age group is fundamental. I think this will be the next step to reduce hospitalizations further,” he said.
More than one million Cariocas have already been vaccinated with the two doses or have received the single dose of the vaccine, and three million have already been vaccinated in the first phase. The original goal of vaccinating 50% of the adult population with the first dose by June has been surpassed by the municipality, with a coverage rate of 58.3%.
The new goal is now to reach 70% of the adult population in July. The expectation is to reach the mark of 90% of Cariocas age 18 or over, vaccinated with the first dose, by August – an anticipation of about two months in relation to the original October.
On Thursday, the vaccination schedule was again brought forward by Mayor Eduardo Paes. Cariocas between 42 and 37 years old will receive the first dose of the vaccine during the next two weeks, sorted by age.