COVID-19 vaccines substantially reduce the risk of dying from COVID-19, and serious side effects are very rare. Excess deaths among working-age adults in 2021 and 2022 were due to COVID-19 and other factors, not vaccination. Faulty logic underlies claims that vaccines caused mass disability and economic harm.
Misconception: Safety
Posts Falsely Claim CDC Official Admitted COVID-19 Vaccines Cause ‘Debilitating Illnesses’
Health problems that are reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System after vaccination are not necessarily caused by a vaccine. Yet social media posts distorted a comment from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official about such reports to falsely say he admitted the vaccines cause “debilitating illnesses.”
Thai Princess’s Coma Due to Infection, Country Not Banning Pfizer’s COVID-19 Vaccine
COVID-19 Vaccines Can Slightly Alter Menstrual Cycle Temporarily, But Don’t Harm Fertility
Social Media Posts Twist Meaning of CDC, FDA Disclosure on Bivalent Booster
Government health agencies disclosed a potential safety concern for strokes in those 65 and older with one of the COVID-19 vaccines, but the agencies haven’t found any causal relationship and the concern was flagged by just one of several monitoring systems. Anti-vaccine campaigners, however, have wrongly claimed the agencies have found a link between the boosters and strokes.
No Surge in Athlete Deaths, Contrary to Widespread Anti-Vaccine Claims
Sports medicine experts say there has been no increase in sudden death or cardiac injury among U.S. athletes since the COVID-19 vaccines became available. Yet anti-vaccine campaigners, comparing unreliable numbers to an unrelated study, have again spread a false narrative about vaccine safety since NFL player Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest.
NFL Player Damar Hamlin’s Cardiac Arrest Triggers Unfounded Social Media Claims
Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and suffered a cardiac arrest moments after taking a hit to his chest during a tackle. While it’s not yet known why his heart stopped, some experts say his condition is most likely due to a heart rhythm problem as a result of that impact. Still, people on social media have baselessly speculated that it was caused by a COVID-19 vaccine.
Social Media Posts Misrepresent FDA’s COVID-19 Vaccine Safety Research
A vaccine safety surveillance study from the Food and Drug Administration has been misrepresented online. The paper did not establish a link between the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and blood clots, as some have claimed — and to date, other, more robust research has not identified such associations.