Aruba hospital Covid figures challenge claim by former minister De Jonge

ORANJESTAD – According to an article written by Sylvia de Leon for Aruba.nu, hospital data from Aruba is at the center of a new analysis questioning former Dutch health minister Hugo de Jonge’s claim that the “vast majority” of Covid patients hospitalized in late 2021 were unvaccinated.

The analysis, prepared by internist-intensivist Jona Walk, data scientist Bram Bakker and Horacio Oduber Hospital director Jacco Vroegop, shows that the gap between vaccinated and unvaccinated patients narrowed considerably over time.

Between September 26 and December 18, 2021, HOH recorded 58 unvaccinated Covid patients and 33 vaccinated patients. From December 19 through February 28, the figures were 133 unvaccinated versus 112 vaccinated. Unvaccinated patients were still the majority, but the margin had become much smaller.

The researchers stress that the figures do not mean vaccination was ineffective. Factors such as vaccination rates in the wider population, age and the risk of severe illness must also be taken into account.

Another key issue is that, according to the analysis, Aruba’s hospital data was shared with the Dutch Ministry of Health. This raises questions about what information officials in The Hague had at the time and how it was weighed in public statements and Covid policy.

The researchers are calling on the parliamentary inquiry into the pandemic to examine how information was selected, assessed and passed through the Dutch health ministry.