The daily death toll for U.S. Covid-19 cases continues to be an issue with a current average of 2300 people per day dying to complications from the disease.  This currently puts Covid-19 as the third leading cause of death annually, just under heart disease and cancer in the United States. Though in January of 2022, it was the 2^nd leading cause of death. The average number of deaths has steadily risen since the discovery of the new Omicron variant and more strongly reflects those over the age of 65 and the unvaccinated.

The first case of the Omicron variant was discovered in Botswana and made its first appearance on American shores on November 30, 2021. Since its discovery on American soil, the daily death toll rose steadily, peaking on February 4 with just under 4000 deaths and a seven-day average of 2600 deaths. The death toll has declined a bit since February 4^th but not as much as it has in the past. Those most affected by the illness and most at risk of death are those people over the age of 65 and those who are unvaccinated, the unvaccinated (ages 12-64) being 15 times more likely to be hospitalized and 10 times more likely to die from Covid-19 complications than those who are fully vaccinated.

As Dr Mark Cameron, an associate professor in the department of population and quantitative health sciences at Case Western University in Ohio, puts it, “The common thread throughout the Omicron wave is that it is largely impacting the unvaccinated, in terms of severity of illness, hospitalization rates and indeed, risk of dying from the infection. It’s crystal clear”

Currently, the number of vaccinated individuals in the U.S. is approximately 63%, with an additional 12% as being partially vaccinated. Due to Covid-19’s extremely infectious nature, experts estimate that vaccination rates for Covid-19 need to be between 80-90% to achieve herd immunity.

According to the Mayo Clinic, “Herd immunity occurs when a large portion of a community (the herd) becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. As a result, the whole community becomes protected — not just those who are immune”.

Herd immunity is the goal of the current vaccination efforts, though the longer that the disease is able to spread and reproduce, the more likely it is that new variants may arise that resistant to the current vaccination efforts. The state of Kansas continues its efforts in response and recovery to the Covid-19 pandemic and urges citizens to obtain free vaccinations at local health departs.