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According to a study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, black adults were hospitalized at nearly four times the rate of white adults in the six weeks after Omicron became the dominant coronavirus variant in the United States.

The overall rate of coronavirus-related hospitalizations during that period — 38.4 per 100,000 adults — was more than double the rate in the previous six months when the Delta variant was dominant, the study said.

For non-Hispanic Black adults, the rate of hospitalization during the same period was 3.8 times the rate for non-Hispanic white adults. The study also said it was the highest rate observed among “any racial and ethnic group during the pandemic.”

The study, published Friday, was led by Christopher A. Taylor, a member of the CDC’s Covid-19 Emergency Response Team, and was co-authored by scientists from universities around the country. was published in the magazine. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly ReportIt was based on a regular report by the agency on infectious diseases in the United States and data from 99 counties in 14 states.

When Omicron peaked in January, hospitalization rates among the unvaccinated were four times the rate among adults who received a set of primary Covid vaccines and 12 times that among adults who received additional doses or supplements, the study found.

When coronavirus vaccines were first made available, Black Americans white Americans much less likely to be vaccinated. A wave of pro-vaccine campaigns during the delta wave, mostly involving the unvaccinated, and an increase in hospitalizations and deaths from the virus Encouraged many in the black community to change their mindsnarrowing the gap.

But the gap was still there when Omicron struck. The percentage of Blacks in the United States who received the primary vaccine series at the end of January was 36.6 percent, with 43.9 percent of them receiving a boost when they were eligible, the study said. For whites, the rates were 47.3 percent and 54.5 percent.

Reasons for hospitalizations among Black adults may include other factors, such as underlying medical conditions or poor access to healthcare, the study said. The increased infectiousness of Omicron may also have increased the risks of hospitalization regardless of vaccination status. During the Omicron wave, 25.5 percent of hospitalized Black patients had received the primary vaccine series, compared to 14.9 percent during Delta.

“Taken together, these findings suggest that the increased risk of hospitalization among Black adults during the Omicron-dominated era may be due, in part, to lower rates of Black adults who received both the primary vaccine series and booster doses,” the study said. .

Pam Belluck contributed to the reporting.