The Poynter Institute Menu Donate State Editions * California * Florida * Iowa * Michigan * New Hampshire * New York * North Carolina * Pennsylvania * Texas * West Virginia * Wisconsin Issues * All Issues * Online hoaxes * Coronavirus * Health Care * Immigration * Extremism * Taxes * Marijuana * Environment * Crime * Guns * Foreign Policy * LGBTQ+ People * Joe Biden * Kamala Harris * Donald Trump * Mitch McConnell * Hakeem Jeffries * Ron DeSantis Media * PunditFact * Tucker Carlson * Sean Hannity * Rachel Maddow * Bloggers * PolitiFact Videos Campaigns * 2024 Elections Truth-o-Meter * True * Mostly True * Half True * Mostly False * False * Pants on Fire Promises * Biden Promise Tracker * Trump-O-Meter * Obameter * Latest Promises About Us * Our Process * Our Staff * En Español * Who pays for PolitiFact? * Advertise with Us * Suggest a Fact-check * Corrections and Updates * Newsletters Donate #### Follow us The Facts Newsletter Sign up English Español ### Get PolitiFact in your inbox. * Weekly Email Newsletter * Daily Email Newsletter Your Email Address Sign Up ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on July 21, 2021 in a CNN town hall: “Ten thousand people have recently died. 9,950 of them, thereabouts, are people who hadn’t been vaccinated.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" mostly-true/4ac7c61540eff5211f6a04d98a6bc93a.jpg.\\") ![\\"mostly- true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") * Public Health * Coronavirus * Joe Biden ![\\"President](\\" President Joe Biden speaks to reporters on July 21, 2021, after a CNN town hall in Cincinnati. (AP) ![\\"Louis](\\" By Louis Jacobson July 22, 2021 # Fact-checking Joe Biden’s figure on unvaccinated COVID-19 deaths #### If Your Time is short • Biden is citing a figure that has been offered publicly on at least two occasions by the director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky. • Walensky cautioned that the data is \"preliminary,\" is based on only a half dozen or so states, and is now about six weeks old. The CDC has not made public any detailed data or methodology. • Despite these shortcomings, experts told PolitiFact that they don’t doubt the figure’s accuracy. The figure is also in line with a separate analysis by the Associated Press. See the sources for this fact-check During a CNN town hall, President Joe Biden emphasized the importance of getting vaccinated for the coronavirus. \"We have a pandemic for those who haven’t gotten a vaccination. It’s that basic, that simple,\" Biden said during the July 21 town hall in Cincinnati, Ohio. \"Ten thousand people have recently died; 9,950 of them, thereabouts, are people who hadn’t been vaccinated.\" That works out to 99.5% of recent COVID-19 deaths occurring among the unvaccinated population. This statistic has been cited frequently by health officials, though its sourcing is a little opaque. When we asked the White House for a database or peer-reviewed paper to support the statistic, they did not provide one. Instead, they pointed us to comments made at the White House by Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. During a July 1 White House press briefing, Walensky said the country has made \"incredible progress towards ending the pandemic\" but added that it’s \"clear that communities where people remain unvaccinated are communities that remain vulnerable. This is all true as we monitor the continued spread of the hyper-transmissible delta variant.\" The delta variant is able to spread faster than previous strains of the novel coronavirus, and now accounts for more than four of every five new infections in the United States. Specifically, Walensky said, \"preliminary data from a collection of states over the last six months suggest 99.5% of deaths from COVID-19 in these states have occurred in unvaccinated people.\" Walensky repeated that figure during congressional testimony on July 20, suggesting it was still the most recent CDC data available on this question. During a hearing, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., asked Walensky for data on the percentage of deaths involving people who were not vaccinated. She responded, \"In a five-month study from January to May in numerous states, five to six states, it was 99.5%.\" Then, during the July 22 White House briefing, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy repeated the 99.5% figure. #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" Jeffrey Barke stated on August 23, 2024 in an Instagram post Food and Drug Administration approval for updated COVID-19 vaccines requires a public health emergency declaration. ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Jeff Cercone • August 27, 2024 Journalists at the Associated Press conducted an analysis of raw data from the CDC to answer the same question. The analysis, published on June 29, found that 150 of the more than 18,000 deaths in May were in fully vaccinated people. That’s about 0.8%, which is very close to the figure Walensky cited. The AP analysis also found that hospitalizations among fully vaccinated people accounted for fewer than 1,200 of more than 107,000 total hospitalizations for the coronavirus, or about 1.1%. Both data points suggested that increased vaccination rates would cut down the total number of hospitalizations and deaths. The CDC did not respond to our inquiry for a database or other evidence in support of the 99.5% figure. That said, medical experts told us that they have a high degree of confidence in Walensky’s statements. \"This sounds true,\" said Dr. Monica Gandhi, a professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco. \"The CDC is able to track deaths quite closely based on hospital records and coding.\" Dr. Babak Javid, another professor of medicine at UCSF, agreed. \"I haven\'t seen any peer-reviewed, or even pre-print, data to support this statement, but I would be surprised if it was made up,\" he said. Even from Walensky’s limited description, however, we do know that the data has limitations. Walensky said it is \"preliminary,\" said it included only a half dozen or so states, and added that it runs through May, which makes it about six weeks old. Looking ahead, Javid said that the percentage of deaths occurring in the unvaccinated population may not stay at 99.5% or thereabouts indefinitely, just based on mathematics. \"I expect pretty much everyone who isn\'t fully vaccinated to be infected by delta, or whatever variant supplants it around the corner, in the next year or two, but large numbers of the fully vaccinated will also be infected,\" he said. \"These infections will skew milder, but in the elderly and vulnerable, that doesn\'t guarantee that 100% of cases won\'t be serious.\" Our ruling Biden said, \"Ten thousand people have recently died. 9,950 of them, thereabouts, are people who hadn’t been vaccinated.\" Biden is citing a figure that has been offered publicly on at least two occasions by the director of the CDC, Walensky. She cautioned that the data it is \"preliminary,\" is based on only a half dozen or so states, and is now about six weeks old. The CDC has not made public any detailed data or methodology. That said, experts told PolitiFact that they don’t doubt the figure’s accuracy. The figure is also in line with a separate analysis by journalists at the Associated Press. The statement is accurate but needs additional context, so we rate the statement Mostly True. #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources Joe Biden, CNN town hall in Cincinnati July 21, 2021 White House, press briefing, July 1, 2021 White House, press briefing, July 22, 2021 Rochelle Walensky, Senate testimony, July 20, 2021 Associated Press, \"Nearly all COVID deaths in US are now among unvaccinated,\" June 29, 2021 Business Insider, \"99.5% of COVID-19 deaths in the US are now in unvaccinated people, CDC head says,\" July 9, 2021 New York Times, \"The Delta variant makes up an estimated 83 percent of U.S. cases, the C.D.C. director says,\" July 20, 2021 Email interview with Babak Javid, professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco, July 22, 2021 Email interview with Monica Gandhi, professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco, July 22, 2021 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Louis Jacobson slide 4 to 6 of 15 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on July 13, 2024 in a statement to the media: “The idea that there’s political violence or violence in America like this is just unheard of.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 15, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Byron Donalds stated on July 7, 2024 in an interview on Fox News Sunday: Kamala Harris \"co-sponsored, fully sponsored\" the Green New Deal. ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 10, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on April 4, 2024 in a post on TikTok: Donald Trump’s plan is “cutting Social Security for you.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • June 21, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on August 22, 2024 in her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention: Former President Donald Trump \"intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax ... that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 30, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" J.D. Vance stated on August 25, 2024 in an interview on NBC\'s \"Meet the Press\": “Anything that you lose on the tariff from the perspective of the consumer, you gain in higher wages, so you\'re ultimately much better off.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • August 29, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 21, 2024 in a Truth Social post: “The Harris-Biden Administration has been caught fraudulently manipulating Job Statistics.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 23, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 8, 2024 in a press conference: Says his Jan. 6, 2021, speech on the White House Ellipse drew the “same number of people,” as the 1963 March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • August 9, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Walz stated on August 6, 2024 in un mitin de campaña en Filadelfia: \"El crimen violento aumentó bajo Donald Trump\". ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 9, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tim Walz stated on August 6, 2024 in a rally in Philadelphia: “Violent crime was up under Donald Trump.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on July 30, 2024 in a rally in Atlanta: Donald Trump “intends to cut” Medicare. ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 7, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on August 2, 2024 in a written statement: \"Since Vice President Harris and I took office … incomes have risen faster than prices.\" ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 6, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on July 30, 2024 in an event in Atlanta: \"Donald Trump intends to cut Social Security.\" ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • July 31, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Pete Buttigieg stated on July 28, 2024 in an interview on Fox News Sunday: “Even before the pandemic, America went into a manufacturing recession.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • July 31, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on July 18, 2024 in a speech in North Carolina: “Today, America has record energy production and we are energy independent.” ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"mostly-true\\"](\\" mostly-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • July 26, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on July 18, 2024 in a campaign event in North Carolina: Project 2025 would “end Head Start.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 23, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on July 13, 2024 in a statement to the media: “The idea that there’s political violence or violence in America like this is just unheard of.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 15, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Byron Donalds stated on July 7, 2024 in an interview on Fox News Sunday: Kamala Harris \"co-sponsored, fully sponsored\" the Green New Deal. ![\\"true\\"](\\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • July 10, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Joe Biden stated on April 4, 2024 in a post on TikTok: Donald Trump’s plan is “cutting Social Security for you.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • June 21, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on August 22, 2024 in her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention: Former President Donald Trump \"intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax ... that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 30, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" J.D. Vance stated on August 25, 2024 in an interview on NBC\'s \"Meet the Press\": “Anything that you lose on the tariff from the perspective of the consumer, you gain in higher wages, so you\'re ultimately much better off.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Louis Jacobson • August 29, 2024 ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on August 21, 2024 in a Truth Social post: “The Harris-Biden Administration has been caught fraudulently manipulating Job Statistics.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 23, 2024 ### Fact-checking Joe Biden’s figure on unvaccinated COVID-19 deaths * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on August 27, 2024 in an Instagram post: California S.B. 1174 eliminates the requirement for voter ID at polling places. ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Sofia Ahmed • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 29, 2024 in X posts: President Joe Biden “did a campaign ad at the graves in Arlington in 2020.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Loreben Tuquero • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 16, 2024 in a video: Video shows “Kamala Harris describing how she can ruin lives with the \'swipe of a pen.’\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 25, 2024 in a post: Kamala Harris’ “plan to tax unrecognized Capital Gains mean(s) if your house goes up in value you will have to pay that Tax Even if you don’t sell your House!” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Sara Swann • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on August 25, 2024 in a Facebook post: “There’s no such thing as menopause.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Madison Czopek • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on August 27, 2024 in an Instagram post: “Hollywood actor Kurt Russell just said: ‘It is now proven, beyond a shadow of a doubt that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden CHEATED in the 2020 election with mail-in ballots.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Kamala Harris stated on August 22, 2024 in her acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention: Former President Donald Trump \"intends to enact what, in effect, is a national sales tax ... that would raise prices on middle-class families by almost $4,000 a year.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 27, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Kurt Russell forms a new non-woke actors alliance with Roseanne Barr and Tim Allen.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on August 23, 2024 in an X post: Photo of former President Donald Trump after an assassination attempt was generated by artificial intelligence. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 30, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" X posts stated on August 28, 2024 in an X post: C-SPAN captions for a JD Vance speech said, “Single person clapping.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • August 30, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. 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Ten thousand people have recently died 9950 of them thereabouts are people who hadn’t been vaccinated