GREEN BAY, Wis. — Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur declined to share Aaron Rodgers’ vaccination status Wednesday, just hours after news broke that the star quarterback tested positive for COVID-19. The NFL Network and ESPN report that the National Football League has known Rodgers has been unvaccinated since the start of the season.
As speculation swirls about whether Rodgers misled the public in late August when he said he was “immunized” against COVID-19, Wisconsin’s top health officials are doubling down on their plea for people across the state to get vaccinated.
Jason Seeds is a Packers fan from Milwaukee. The last thing he saw before heading to a pharmacy Wednesday morning for a vaccine booster dose was news of Rodgers testing positive.
“He said he was immunized and I’m wondering what that means,” Seeds said. “It does feel a little misleading.”
While Seeds is bummed Rodgers will miss at least one game, he says the disappointment motivated him even more to get an extra layer of protection.
“I think that it’s been out there long enough and the data speaks for itself,” he said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now tracking data that compares COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths among those who are unvaccinated versus those who have gotten their shots.
The latest CDC data shows unvaccinated people are 6 times as likely to contract the virus, 12 times more likely to be hospitalized and at 11 times greater risk of dying from COVID-19 compared to those who are fully vaccinated.
While COVID-19 case counts have been declining of late in the state, Wisconsin Hospital Association data shows 928 people are currently hospitalized with the virus. More than a quarter of those patients are in intensive care units. The Wisconsin Hospital Association says just 83 ICU beds are available at hospitals across Wisconsin.
"Our hospitals are full, our hospital providers and healthcare providers are worn out, but doing incredibly good work taking care of people, but we want to support the healthcare system by preventing as much disease as we can which involves getting vaccine for COVID-19,” said Wisconsin’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ryan Westergaard.
ESPN reports that Rodgers requested that the NFL allow an alternate treatment he allegedly received prior to returning to the team this summer to count as a vaccination for protocol purposes.
Dr. Westergaard says the only scientifically proven method to safely prevent COVID-19 infection or hospitalization are vaccines.
"Evidence-based strategies for developing a protective immune response that we have good quality medical evidence for are vaccines, period,” he said.
The CDC says those who have been infected with COVID-19 typically have natural immunity for at least six months, but its studies show vaccines provide more consistent protection.
