Breakthrough COVID-19 Cases Are on the Rise Among the Vaccinated The 125,682 'breakthrough' cases in 38 states represent less than .08 percent of the 164.2 million-plus people fully vaccinated since January Published 4 hours ago • Updated 1 hour ago NBCUniversal Media, LLC At least 125,000 fully vaccinated Americans have tested positive for COVID-19 and 1,400 of those have died, according to data collected by NBC News. The 125,682 "breakthrough" cases in 38 states found by NBC News represent less than .08 percent of the 164.2 million-plus people who have been fully vaccinated since January, or about one in every 1,300. The number of cases and deaths among the vaccinated is very small compared to the number among the unvaccinated. A former Biden adviser on COVID-19 estimated that 98 to 99 percent of deaths are among the unvaccinated.