Unvaccinated people accounted for 98% of COVID-related hospitalizations from June through August, costing billions of dollars, according to “conservative estimates of costs” from the Kaiser Family Foundation. KFF came up with the estimate using federal data that shows the average Medicare fee-for-service costs for treating COVID-19 in hospitals at about $24,033.

The organization cited another analysis of private insurance claims for pneumonia hospitalizations filed before the pandemic began, showing that cost reached nearly $20,300.

In June, about $600 million was spent caring for those who are unvaccinated despite widespread access. In July, that figure grew by $1.4 billion and by another $3.7 billion in August. More than 25,400 COVID-19 patients on average were treated in hospital ICUs over the past seven days, according to tracking maintained by Johns Hopkins University.