In their response to COVID-19, Kansas senior citizens set an example for everyone

The Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Ross Boelling, 65, is the newly elected president of the Kansas Silver Haired Legislature.

For the past year, I have watched COVID-19 numbers closely. It was evident incredibly early on that Kansans 65 years of age and older were disproportionately suffering from the effects of the virus. Consistently, seniors were 15-16% of new COVID cases being reported in Kansas but were 55% or more of hospitalizations and 80% or more of the resulting deaths.

Seniors got it more seriously than the rest of Kansans.

While this was happening, I also watched in disbelief as friends and others continued to regard the virus as a hoax and “just like the flu.”

As of June 21, there were 5,129 dead Kansans due to COVID-19; that is like a tornado killing everyone in Concordia. By that same date, 10,980 Kansans had been hospitalized due to COVID-19; that is like putting everyone in Merriam in the hospital. Kansas health care resources were at maximum capacity over the winter, but some Kansans still doubted, at least until they or someone they care about caught it. Then their opinions changed to, “Wow, this is real, and it is nasty.”

But what Kansas seniors also got early on was that COVID-19 was a serious threat. Most of them made a huge effort to self-isolate, wear masks, not travel and be incredibly careful. Still the virus spread through their population. In just November and December of 2020 and January 2021, seniors suffered 6,143 cases, including 2,914 hospitalizations and 2,413 deaths.

But then, something happened. After a very bleak COVID-19 winter, vaccines were released and widely distributed during January.

This age group includes most folks that received polio and smallpox vaccinations (and other vaccines) while growing up, so they got it that vaccines work to protect them and those around them. Seniors jumped at the opportunity for vaccinations. By the end of January, 14.5% of the Kansas senior population had already been vaccinated; February showed 44.7% of seniors vaccinated; March 78.9%; April 85.6% and, at the end of May, fully 86.6% of seniors had been vaccinated. This population reached herd immunity in April.

As a result of their vaccinations, the proportion of COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths among Kansas seniors have decreased significantly since January. Between December and May, the percentage of new cases among seniors dropped 6.8% — from 17.3% of new cases to 10.5%. The senior hospitalization percentage dropped from 64.3% in January to 41.6% in May. Finally, deaths among seniors dropped from December’s 86.9% to 61.7% in May.

There are still senior cases, hospitalizations and deaths being reported, but these appear to be among those who have health conditions that prevent them from getting the vaccine, or who refused to get vaccinated or acknowledge the reality of the pandemic. Yes, there is still some slight risk of getting COVID-19 after vaccination, but the effects are much less severe than if you are unvaccinated.

The bottom line is that COVID-19 vaccinations are working for Kansas seniors.

Unfortunately, other age groups in Kansas do not get it. As of May 28, only 26.4% of Kansans ages 25-64 and only 31.7% of Kansans ages 0-24 had been vaccinated. The data shows they are increasingly being affected by COVID-19 while seniors are not.

Many think the crisis is over, but I remain concerned. Less than half of Kansans have been vaccinated against COVID-19, mask restrictions are pretty much ignored, and life returns to pre-COVID activity. However, new cases, hospitalizations and deaths remain near to numbers seen last June when the pandemic was just ramping up. There are still a lot of people for COVID-19 to infect.

Fortunately, Kansas seniors understood it and are protected. We just wish the rest of Kansas understood it and would get vaccinated. We have shown you that vaccines work. Our goal is for you to live long enough to be seniors too. Pay attention!

Through its opinion section, the Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.