FOI Reference: FOI/2021/3392
You asked
Could you please provide me data on Covid-19 deaths by vaccination status and age for this year to date? Do you have data that also includes comorbidities associated with Covid-19 deaths by vaccination status or just including comorbidities?
We said
Thank you for your request.
We hold the following analysis Deaths involving COVID-19 by vaccination status, England which is an analysis of deaths involving COVID-19 and all cause deaths by vaccination status that occurred between 1 January and 31 October 2021 in England. Please see the following link to the relevant dataset: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/datasets/deathsbyvaccinationstatusengland
Table 4 of this dataset shows monthly deaths from January to October 2021 by vaccination status. Table 6 of this dataset shows this information by age.
The data are for England only, as vaccinations data for Wales is not yet available to be linked to the mortality dataset and the Public Health Data Asset covers England only.
A further release is provisionally scheduled for February 2022, final date of publication will be announced on Release Calendar. As such, information for November and December 2021 is exempt under Section 22(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, whereby information is exempt from release if there is a view to publish the information in the future. Furthermore, as a central government department and producer of official statistics, we need to have the freedom to be able to determine our own publication timetables. This is to allow us to deal with the necessary preparation, administration and context of publications. It would be unreasonable to consider disclosure when to do so would undermine our functions.
This exemption is subject to a public interest test. We recognise the desirability of information being freely available and this is considered by ONS when publication schedules are set in accordance with the Code of Practice for Statistics. The need for timely data must be balanced against the practicalities of applying statistical skill and judgement to produce the high quality, assured data needed to inform decision-making. If this balance is incorrectly applied, then we run the risk of decisions being based on inaccurate data which is arguably not in the public interest. This will have an impact on public trust in official statistics in a time when accuracy of official statistics is more important to the public than ever before.
Unfortunately, we do not hold information showing COVID-19 deaths including pre-existing conditions by vaccination status. Whilst we hold information on deaths and receive data on vaccinations from the National Immunisation Management System (NIMS), we do not hold any analysis on this data other than that published in our "Deaths by vaccination status" releases. To fulfil this request, we would need use a high level of statistical skill and judgement including complex data linkage and analysis of the mortality data and vaccinations data from the NIMS to the 2011 Census and GP register in order to create a bespoke analysis or table. Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, Public Authorities are not obligated to create information to respond to requests. We thereforedo not hold this information.
For further information, please contact Health.Data@ons.gov.uk.