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COVID-19 vaccines currently in use stimulate immunity to the same degree as natural infection without exposing the vaccinated person to the risks associated with the disease

Vaccination stimulates the development of immunological memory and protects individuals from infectious diseases in the same way that natural infection does. However, vaccination is safer than natural infection because it doesn’t expose the person to the risks associated with the disease. COVID-19 poses serious health risks to infected individuals that can lead to potential long-term health effects or death. Therefore, COVID-19 vaccines are an important tool to minimize complications from the disease.

Frequency of deaths in elderly individuals after COVID-19 vaccination wasn’t higher than the frequency in those who weren’t vaccinated

The COVID-19 vaccines approved for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration were thoroughly reviewed for safety and efficacy before approval. Like any medicine or medical procedure, vaccines can also cause side effects in some vaccinated individuals. Some of the common side effects of the COVID-19 vaccines are pain at the injection site, fever, headache, and fatigue. However, these side effects are mild and short-lived compared to the risks associated with natural infection, such as long-term effects of COVID-19 and death.

Most positive COVID-19 PCR test results are true positives; WHO information notice didn’t change threshold or criteria for a positive COVID-19 test

The COVID-19 PCR test detects the presence of the genetic material of the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2. The test is highly sensitive, meaning that it can detect very small amounts of the virus, which can occur during early or late stages of infection. The test is also highly specific for the virus, meaning that it doesn’t detect the presence of other viruses, such as other members of the coronavirus family which cause the common cold. Although no test with a 100% accuracy rate exists, given the PCR test’s high sensitivity and specificity, most positive PCR test results are true positives.

Too early for conclusions on long-term COVID-19 immunity, but some findings suggest that immune memory against the virus lasts for up to eight months and possibly longer

Scientists still have a lot to learn about the factors contributing to COVID-19 immunity. Among some of the biggest questions is the duration of protection developed after natural infection or vaccination. This has significant implications on how well herd immunity can be maintained through vaccination and how often reinfection occurs in recovered COVID-19 patients. Some studies reported encouraging findings showing that immune memory may endure for at least several months and possibly longer. But at the moment, it is too early to make firm conclusions about how long COVID-19 immunity lasts.

People who received the COVID-19 vaccine aren’t more likely to develop facial paralysis than people who didn’t receive the vaccine

Incidental illnesses are expected to occur at a certain rate in the general population, even among people who aren’t vaccinated against COVID-19 or any other disease. The incidence of Bell’s palsy, a transient form of facial paralysis, is not higher among people who received the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in Israel than in the unvaccinated general population. There is no data to support claims that the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine causes Bell’s palsy.

VAERS reports of adverse events in people who received COVID-19 vaccines don’t demonstrate that these events were caused by the vaccines; evidence does not indicate COVID-19 vaccines caused Bell’s palsy and deaths

Both COVID-19 vaccines approved for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration were thoroughly reviewed for safety and efficacy before approval. The U.S. Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) enables the public and healthcare providers to report adverse events that occur after vaccination. It serves as an early warning system for potential problems with vaccines. However, determining whether there is a causal link requires further investigation into these reports. VAERS data only tells us that an adverse event occurred after vaccination; on its own it cannot prove that vaccines caused the adverse event.

Lower flu activity this season likely due to COVID-19 restrictions, increased flu vaccination, and other factors, not to misdiagnosis of flu cases as COVID-19

Public health authorities are detecting lower than usual flu activity this season compared to previous seasons. Widespread adoption of public health measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19, such as the use of face masks, physical distancing, and travel restrictions, are likely contributing to the lower flu activity. Additional factors, including increased flu vaccinations and different transmission dynamics for the flu and COVID-19, can also influence how each disease spreads. However, flu viruses are still circulating and may peak later in the season.

Strong evidence lacking to support claim that ivermectin is a cure for COVID-19; there are only limited clinical results at this stage

Proving that a given drug is an efficient and safe treatment for a disease is a lengthy process that requires well-designed clinical studies. The gold standard for clinical studies is the randomized, controlled, double-blind trial, which involves a large number of patients in multiple hospitals. While some clinical data suggests that ivermectin has an antiviral effect against the virus that causes COVID-19, clinical trials replicating this result are still lacking. Therefore, it is not possible at this time to claim that ivermectin is a cure for COVID-19.

Vaccines protect people from diseases, but don’t always prevent disease transmission; research ongoing to determine if COVID-19 vaccines stop transmission

According to the CDC and the FDA, a vaccine is a product that stimulates a person’s immune system to build defenses against a particular disease-causing microorganism, thereby preventing disease in the vaccinated individual. It is still unknown whether the COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, which were approved for emergency use by the FDA, can stop transmission of the virus. Research is ongoing to address this question. Since it is currently unclear whether or not vaccinated people can still transmit the virus that causes COVID-19 to others, it remains important for people to follow preventative measures, such as washing hands frequently, wearing a face mask and practicing physical distancing.

COVID-19 vaccine did not cause the death of a Portuguese woman, contrary to social media posts’ suggestions

The launch of COVID-19 vaccination campaigns in Europe and the U.S. has led to social media articles and posts making unsupported claims about alleged adverse reactions to the vaccine, including deaths and facial paralysis. Except for some rare cases of anaphylaxis in people with a history of severe allergic reactions, investigations showed no evidence of the COVID-19 vaccine causing severe adverse effects. Safety data from clinical trials and vaccination of thousands of people worldwide indicate that COVID-19 vaccines are safe, and serious reactions are rare.