Older unvaccinated adults are more likely to be hospitalized or die from COVID-19. The risk for severe illness with COVID-19 increases with age, with older adults facing the highest risk. Moreover, this risk increases if you have a chronic condition or a weakened immune system. Because of this, older adults are one of the first groups of people being offered the COVID-19 vaccine.

Real-world assessments of COVID-19 vaccines have shown that full vaccination was effective in preventing 94-96% of COVID-19-associated hospitalizations among adults aged ≥65 years.

COVID-19 vaccines continue to provide strong protection against severe disease and death associated with emerging virus variants, including Delta and Omicron. The vaccines have been shown to be safe in older adults, including those with chronic conditions or a weakened immune system. Most of the side effects are mild and short-term, and not everyone gets them.