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It might appear that we’re back to some semblance of “normal” at this point in the COVID-19 pandemic. But many people remain at higher risk for serious outcomes like hospitalization and death, especially older Americans.

Legula Estiloz was diagnosed with COVID-19 at age 104, for example. “She and I both came down with COVID at the same time, a few days after Christmas of 2020,” her son Tim Estiloz says.

“I went in to wake her up for her breakfast, and she was just drenched, sopping wet—her bed clothes and her nightgown,” Tim says.

The COVID-19 vaccines were not available at the time. “It is all the more miraculous that she survived it at that age, and without even the benefit of the vaccine to get her through it,” he says.

Americans 65 and older are dying at disproportionately higher rates from COVID-19. For example, people ages 65 to 74 account for 22% of COVID-19 deaths, even though this age group represents less than 10% of the U.S. population, CDC figures show. The picture is more dire for those 75 to 84—a group that accounts for 26% of deaths but less than 5% of the population. Head over to WebMD to read the full story.