4.5 percent of the total population is officially neither vaccinated nor recovered, but has antibodies. This means: You have gone through a Covid infection unnoticed and are therefore also protected against the virus. This is the result of a study by Statistics Austria that went almost unnoticed. It shows: Austria is also getting closer to the goal of so-called herd immunity.
In addition to those 6,234,959 Austrians with a valid vaccination certificate – they make up 69.80 percent of the total population and 73.36 percent of the vaccinable population – there are another 400,000 people who also have antibodies, of course without knowing it.
The question of herd immunity has occupied the public and the medical profession since the beginning of the pandemic. At the end of September 2021, the Association of General Practitioners called for a one-off campaign for those who had not been vaccinated and those who had not recovered: As part of an Austria-wide campaign, this group of people should be able to take a test of their antibody status free of charge. “The unreported number of people with significant antibody levels, who are classified as non-vaccinated and non-recovered, is of great interest, as it contributes significantly to the possible development of herd immunity,” the association emphasized at the time.
The wish remained unfulfilled, the government did not implement it. However, Statistics Austria has in the meantime carried out a COVID-19 prevalence study. In her own investigation, she surveyed the antibody status of citizens who were not vaccinated and not officially known to have recovered. From November 30, 2021 to January 13, 2022, she collected blood samples from 1,217 people throughout Austria and examined them for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2.
At the time of the survey, every fifth person (21.7 percent) who was not vaccinated and who was not officially known to have recovered had gone through an infection unnoticed. That corresponded to around 400,000 people at the end of December 2021. For children and young people under the age of 18 it was 23.2 percent. For people aged 18 and over, the value was 20.3 percent.
In addition to the 6.23 million Austrians with a valid vaccination certificate, there are 400,000 other citizens with measured antibodies.
Statistics Austria carried out this study on behalf of the Ministry of Education and in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, the Medical University of Vienna, the Austrian Society for Paediatrics and the Ministry of Defence.
