When 62-year-old radio host Phil Valentine died in August 2021 from COVID-19, the vaccine skeptic's brother said Phil would, if he could, say "Go get vaccinated. Quit worrying about politics. Look at the dadgum data."

Unfortunately, many older people aren't paying attention to the news that the vaccine and boosters offer powerful protection from COVID-19-related hospitalization and death and from long COVID-associated brain fog and dementia.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that 92% of people ages 65 and over have gotten their initial vaccination, but only 71% have gotten the first booster and 44% the second.

A Kaiser Family Foundation survey reveals that a paltry 8% have gone on to get booster number three — the updated bivalent booster. And that's despite the fact that while folks over age 65 account for just 13% of COVID-19 cases, they experience about 80% of COVID-related deaths.

Some of the reluctance to boost stems from the continuing isolation that older people face, making them doubt the need. Some is from being shot-weary. And some is from not understanding how protective additional inoculations are.

Seven or more days after a fourth dose (the second booster), vaccine effectiveness for preventing hospitalization among adults age 50 years or older rises to 80%. The new bivalent booster (the third one) targets more variations of the virus, offering even more protection.

Getting all three boosters helps you avoid inflammation from even minimally symptomatic COVID-19, and that decreases your risk of heart attack and stroke substantially.