SSI: COVID-19 and Influenza Now Have the Same Mortality Rate

COVID-19 no longer poses a greater risk of death than influenza among hospitalized patients. This is shown by new data from the Statens Serum Institut (SSI) for the 2024/25 winter season.

According to SSI, the 30-day mortality rate after hospitalization was 10–11 percent for both COVID-19 and influenza patients. This indicates that the difference in severity between the two diseases has now leveled out.

– “What we are likely seeing is that our immune response to COVID-19 has caught up, and the virus appears to have settled into a pattern as a recurring illness similar to influenza,” says Anders Hviid, Head of Department at SSI and senior author of the study.

He emphasizes, however, that both diseases must still be taken seriously:

– “Both illnesses must continue to be taken seriously, and vaccination remains important.”

SSI therefore continues to recommend vaccination for elderly and vulnerable individuals during seasons with high transmission of both COVID-19 and influenza.

The analysis shows that from June 8, 2024, to June 1, 2025, a total of 6,326 people were hospitalized with influenza and 4,562 with COVID-19.

The results have been peer-reviewed and published in the journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases.