COVID-19 cases may have peaked in the D.C. region, but the death toll is rising in some parts.  Local government officials are saying that many of the residents who are dying are unvaccinated. They are often older or have pre-existing health conditions that put them at greater risk of complications.

COVID-19 vaccines have repeatedly proven to be highly effective at protecting against serious illness. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people who are unvaccinated are 11 times more likely to die from COVID-19 compared to those who are vaccinated.

D.C. 

After experiencing record-breaking case counts over the holidays, D.C. was hit with a wave of hospitalizations and deaths in January. On Jan. 13, DC Health reported that ten residents died of COVID-19 –   with the residents ranging in age between 52 and 72. DC Health had not reported as many COVID-19 deaths since January of last year, according to an analysis of health department data by DCCovid.com.

DC Health deputy director Patrick Ashley says the ten Washingtonians who died of COVID-19 were either unvaccinated, or their vaccination status is unknown.

“The mass majority of these individuals that we’re seeing that are dying, whether they’re dying at home, or dying in the hospital, is because they’re unvaccinated,”  Ashley said at a press conference on Tuesday.

While not in the double digit range like Jan. 13, DC Health is still announcing new COVID-19 deaths on a daily basis.  A spokesperson for DC Health tells DCist/WAMU via email that “Of the persons who have passed away due to COVID-19 in January 2022, approximately 60.5% were unvaccinated.”

Maryland

Both Montgomery County and Prince George’s County saw a rise in deaths related to COVID-19 over the last several weeks.

“Unfortunately, the number of COVID deaths per day is still on the increase,” said Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich on Thursday during his weekly address. “However, with our County’s high vaccination rate, we are seeing significantly fewer deaths than the state average.”

Montgomery County accounts for 8% of deaths this month in Maryland, despite representing 17% of the statewide population, noted Elrich. Montgomery County’s vaccination rate is higher than Maryland’s – roughly 83% of Montgomery County residents are fully vaccinated, while 72% of Marylanders are.

More granular data on the vaccination status of deaths in Montgomery County and Prince George’s County was not immediately available. George Lettis, the spokesperson for the Prince George’s County Health Department,  tells DCist/WAMU that Maryland and individual hospitals gather and release vaccination and deaths data.

Virginia

In Northern Virginia, the death rate due to COVID-19 is linear, not trending up or down, according to the Office of Epidemiology at the Virginia health department.

While deaths appear to have stagnated overall, some counties have reported higher rates than usual in recent weeks. Alexandria Health Department spokesperson Natalie Talis says the city experienced four deaths related to COVID-19 so far in January, which is an increase from the normal rate. The deaths included a mix of vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals, she tells DCist/WAMU.

“These deaths were in older residents with pre-existing conditions,” Talis says of the vaccinated victims. “Most were fully vaccinated and boosted. Some individuals were already on hospice before contracting COVID-19.”

Talis says the percent of cases that resulted in death is lower now than compared to previous points in pandemic.