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Video shared by Sebastian Gorka Facebook page shows nurse making false and unsubstantiated claims about ivermectin, COVID-19 PCR tests, and COVID-19 vaccine safety

Data from clinical trials and ongoing monitoring of vaccination campaigns show that COVID-19 vaccines are very safe and effective. Their benefits outweigh their risks, as they are highly effective at reducing a person’s risk of infection and severe illness. There is no reliable scientific evidence demonstrating that ivermectin is an effective COVID-19 treatment, although research is currently underway to resolve this question.

U.S. prison releases complemented other strategies to limit the spread of COVID-19 in jails and prisons, including face masks

Prisoner releases from U.S. jails and prisons occurred as a response to rapidly increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths among incarcerated individuals. Other strategies to limit the spread of the coronavirus in prisons and jails, including mask-wearing, were adopted for the majority of the incarcerated population that weren’t released. The scientific evidence for the ability of face masks to reduce the spread of COVID-19 has only increased since the beginning of the pandemic.

Washington Times article by Robert Malone and Peter Navarro relies on inaccurate and unsubstantiated claims about virus evolution, vaccine immunity, and COVID-19 vaccine safety

“This article has inaccuracies throughout with a clear view to push an anti-vaccine agenda. The picture depicting a skull with eyes and nose made of coronaviruses in the shape of the U.S. is sensationalist. The opening line calls it Biden’s strategy. It was also Trump’s and is the strategy of every country and the WHO.”

Face masks can filter small airborne particles, including respiratory droplets, and are effective at reducing the spread of COVID-19

Face masks filter small airborne particles which carry viral particles, including respiratory droplets, even if these particles are smaller than the pore size of face masks, as small airborne particles do not move in a straight line and collide with the fabric fibers while passing through the mask. There is also evidence that face masks are effective in preventing the transmission of COVID-19, so their use by the general population has been recommended by various public health agencies such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

Compared to unvaccinated people, vaccinated individuals are more protected against the Delta variant

Multiple studies show that fully vaccinated people possess neutralizing antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant that hamper the ability of the virus to infect the cells. Although the Delta variant can partially evade vaccine-induced immunity, vaccination lowers the risk of developing symptomatic and severe disease. While infected people who are vaccinated show similar viral loads to unvaccinated people, the viral load decreases more quickly in vaccinated people, suggesting that the period during which they are contagious is shorter. This would reduce their capacity for transmission.

Family physician Daniel Stock repeated previously debunked misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines, treatments, and control strategies in a Mount Vernon School Board Meeting

Vaccination is one of the most effective ways to protect individuals and communities from potentially harmful diseases. History shows that vaccines don’t need to completely block infection or eradicate the disease to control the spread of infectious diseases within a population. COVID-19 vaccines can effectively reduce infections and prevent over 90% of severe illnesses and deaths, making them one of our best tools to curb the pandemic.

COVID-19 vaccines are a much safer way of acquiring immunity than infection, which requires exposing the person to risks from the disease

The spread of the Delta variant has caused new COVID-19 surges in many countries, including Israel. Data from Israel indicates that the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has a lower effectiveness (64%) against infection and symptomatic illness with this variant, but the vaccine remains highly effective at preventing 93% of serious illnesses. Hence, Israel is now seeing fewer COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths compared to previous waves. This shows that COVID-19 vaccines are a safer way of acquiring immunity than infection and effectively protect people from illness and death.

New York Magazine article on children’s risks from COVID-19 is accurate, but more context regarding difference in risk between young and older children would be helpful

As a whole, children are at a lower risk of serious illness and death from COVID-19 compared to adults. However, very young children face a different level of risk compared to older children like teenagers. Long COVID, a condition in which people who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 continue to show signs of illness even weeks and months later, has been documented in children. Definitive information regarding the prevalence of long COVID in children is lacking, but research is currently underway to address this research question.

Vaccinated people are much more protected from COVID-19 than unvaccinated individuals; the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccines outweigh their risks

Epidemiological studies show that there are much fewer COVID-19 cases or deaths among vaccinated people compared to unvaccinated individuals. Published data show that vaccinated people infected by SARS-CoV-2 usually present a lower viral load, preventing severe forms of the disease, and reducing the likelihood of transmission. Vaccination isn’t associated with an increased likelihood of dying and efficiently protects from COVID-19.

COVID-19 vaccines effectively prevent severe disease; haven’t shown signs of antibody-dependent enhancement as claimed by Robert Malone

Antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) is a mechanism that occurs when antibodies can’t neutralize a virus but instead increase its ability to infect cells, making the disease worse. While ADE was a concern during COVID-19 vaccine development, previous knowledge allowed researchers to minimize this risk from early stages. COVID-19 vaccines haven’t shown signs of causing more severe disease in animal studies, clinical trials, nor vaccination roll-out. On the contrary, all FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective in preventing severe disease.