Covid-19 patients who are fully vaccinated had to spend less on hospitalisation expenses by nearly a fourth and needed to stay for a shorter time in the hospital, a new study has revealed, adding that there were fewer Covid related deaths as well.

“There was a marked reduction in the total hospitalisation expenses by approximately 24 per cent, the average length of stay (ALOS) by a mean of 2.1 days, ICU requirement by 66 per cent and a reduction of approximately 81 per cent in mortality among patients who had completed two doses of vaccination,” said a study by Star Health Insurance.

The cohort study also found that the average cost of hospitalisation of the unvaccinated group was ₹2.77 lakh while the vaccinated group recorded an average cost of ₹2.1 lakh. “The reduction in cost was due to factors like reduced need of ICU requirement and reduction in the length of hospital stay from an average of seven days among unvaccinated to an average of 4.9 days for the vaccinated group,” it said. The findings also held true for patients with comorbidities as well.

The study was conducted during the second wave of the pandemic in March and April 2021 and considered a sample size of 3,820 hospitalised patients from across India who were 45 years and above. “Our aim was to measure and understand in exact terms the impact of Covid-19 vaccination in patients who contracted the illness 14 days after the second dose versus unvaccinated patients, thus making it a unique research in its own right,” said S Prakash, Managing Director, Star Health and Allied Insurance.

Also read: Covid-19 vaccination: India has administered over 38 crore doses

However, the study found vaccine hesitancy to be common due to fear, myths and misinformation.

Related Topics