Key facts
- Updated COVID-19 vaccines continue to protect against cardiovascular disease, including heart attacks and strokes.
- A study of over 1 million VA patients found 38% vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19-associated major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE).
- The vaccines are estimated to reduce MACE events from 5 to 3 per 10,000 people.
- Benefits were most pronounced in individuals aged 75 and older and those with underlying health conditions.
- Separate research indicates vaccines reduce hospitalization and critical illness risk by 35% and 41%, respectively.
- Low vaccination rates are attributed to anti-vaccine rhetoric, despite evidence of favorable benefit-to-risk ratios.
Updated COVID-19 vaccines continue to offer significant protection against cardiovascular disease, particularly for older adults and those with underlying medical conditions, according to a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. The research, which analyzed data from over 1 million patients in a US Department of Veterans Affairs health system, found that the 2024-2025 vaccine was associated with a 38 percent effectiveness against major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), such as heart attacks and strokes. This benefit is estimated to reduce the rate of MACE from approximately 5 in 10,000 to 3 in 10,000 people.
The study, led by epidemiologist Ziyad Al-Aly, also indicated stronger benefits when considering MACE and deaths without documented COVID-19 cases, suggesting that some infections may have been missed. Extrapolating these findings, vaccination could potentially avert about 2,370 MACE events and 1,580 deaths per 1 million people over an eight-month period, though researchers urge caution due to study limitations, including a predominantly older, White, and male veteran population.
An accompanying study in JAMA Internal Medicine reinforced the vaccines' direct protection against COVID-19, reducing hospitalization and critical illness risks by 35% and 41%, respectively. In an editorial, Robert Califf, a cardiologist and former FDA commissioner, highlighted the favorable benefit-to-risk balance of the updated boosters. However, he expressed concern that anti-vaccine rhetoric, including statements from the US Department of Health and Human Services, is deterring vaccination. Current federal data shows only 17.5% of US adults and 22.6% of those over 65 have received the latest COVID-19 shot, a trend Califf attributes to the politicization of vaccines, which he believes impacts public health and longevity.