Years after the virus that causes COVID-19 kicked off a global pandemic, it’s still sending thousands of Canadians into hospital each year alongside other respiratory infections — despite a suite of vaccines that can slash someone’s risk of serious illness.

Striking new data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) shows hospitalization rates for vaccine-preventable respiratory diseases more than doubled in 2024 compared to pre-pandemic levels, all while vaccination rates are backsliding.

There were 142 hospitalizations for every 100,000 Canadians that year, the data shows, up from roughly 66 per 100,000 in 2019.

The CIHI team tallied up nearly 60,000 vaccine-preventable respiratory hospitalizations country-wide for 2024 and found that, together, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) accounted for more than half, while COVID alone contributed to more than 40 per cent.

“People assume that COVID-19 is done … but what our data is showing is that it’s still having a big impact on our hospitals,” said Mélanie Josée Davidson, director of CIHI’s health system performance division.