Israel’s top health official says 17% unvaccinated ‘a strain on hospitals’; account for 60% of COVID deaths

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Unvaccinated Israelis are putting strain on hospitals, Nachman Ash, the Health Ministry’ coronavirus director-general said Thursday, as official figures showed that the 17 percent of eligible Israelis who have not received the vaccine account for 60 percent of coronavirus deaths in the past two weeks.

“Illness today is mainly among the unvaccinated, [and] they are straining the hospitals,” Ash said. The strain is mainly felt by medical workers, he said – specifically, those working in emergency wards.

“We are still finding room for everyone, but if the numbers go up, difficult decisions will have to made, and we don’t want to get to that point,” Ash stated.

He noted in particular the number of ECMO machines – which replace the function of the heart and lungs in the most serious coronavirus cases – that are in use, warning that “it’s very close to the limit of our capability.” Ash said the Health Ministry would advise the coronavirus cabinet to limit attendance at large, crowded events, particularly sporting events, later on Thursday.

On Thursday, the number of those hospitalized in serious condition remained stable with 723 people, including 197 on ventilators and 253 in critical condition, the Health Ministry said. There were 69,076 active cases on Wednesday. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, 7,592 people have died of the coronavirus in Israel.

Anti-vaccine demonstrators near Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s home in Ra’anana, July.Ofer Vaknin

Health Ministry figures show that the 17 percent of eligible Israelis who are unvaccinated constitute 65 percent of active serious cases, 70 percent of new serious cases, and 63 percent of deaths this week. Among those under 60 years old, the unvaccinated account for 85 percent of serious cases.

Thirty-nine COVID patients in Israel were connected to ECMO machines as of Wednesday. Most of the people attached to these machines are not elderly and suffering from a plethora of background illnesses – 29 of the 39 are between the ages of 40 and 60. Thirty-three are unvaccinated, with only four patients fully vaccinated.

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Also Thursday, the Education Ministry instructed all directors and principals of educational institutions to refuse entry to allow teaching staff who do not present proof of immunity or a negative test. The letter sent to principals further said that any employees unwilling to cooperate are to be considered absent and therefore not get paid. Furthermore, they are not to be permitted to teach classes remotely.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said Wednesday that the first days of October are expected to be “complicated” for the school system with the coronavirus still spreading, but he stressed that the government wants to keep schools open, so the economy can function and to prevent “raising a generation of zombies here.”

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has announced that a coronavirus drug for patients in mild to moderate condition who are at high risk of deteriorating will now be provided through health maintenance organizations and not just in hospitals and nursing homes. HMOs will provide Regeneron Pharmaceuticals’ REGEN-COV drug and each will set the criteria determining which patients are eligible to receive it. The Health Ministry has not yet set official protocol for using the drug, and the policy currently varies from hospital to hospital.