Nearly all of the people who died from COVID-19 in the U.S. in recent weeks were not vaccinated, the Associated Press reports. Just 150 of the more than 18,000 COVID-19 deaths in May were among fully vaccinated people, about 0.8 percent, according to an analysis by the outlet. The data underscores the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines as demand for them has slowed to a grinding halt. Dr. Rochelle Welensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, encouraged Americans to get vaccinated and continued to tout the efficacy of the vaccines. “Nearly every death, especially among adults, due to COVID-19, is, at this point, entirely preventable,” Welensky said. While the U.S. has administered more than 319 million doses of the vaccine, the U.S. averaged 1.05 million vaccinations per day on June 22, down from 3.97 million shots given on April 17, according to Bloomberg’s COVID-19 tracker. The White House announced Tuesday that the U.S. will likely miss President Biden’s July 4 goal of administering one dose to at least 70 percent of Americans.
