copenlu/druid huggingface dataset:
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2023-01-01): - Cancellation of public events during COVID-19 pandemic - Chile: COVID-19 weekly death rate by vaccination status - Confirmed COVID-19 deaths per million vs. GDP per capita - Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths - Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases by world regionBy Region - Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 deaths by world region - Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 deaths vs. cases - Daily COVID-19 tests - Daily COVID-19 tests per 1,000 peopleRolling 7-day average - Daily COVID-19 vaccine doses administered - Daily and total confirmed COVID-19 deaths - Daily confirmed COVID-19 cases by world regionStacked area chart – by world region - Daily confirmed COVID-19 deaths by world region - Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths - Daily new confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Sweden - Daily new estimated COVID-19 infections from the ICL model - Daily new estimated COVID-19 infections from the IHME model - Daily new estimated COVID-19 infections from the LSHTM model - Daily new estimated COVID-19 infections from the YYG model - Daily new estimated infections of COVID-19 - Daily share of the population receiving a COVID-19 vaccine dose - Daily vs. total confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people - Debt or contract relief during the COVID-19 pandemic - [...] per confirmed caseBar chart - Total COVID-19 vaccine doses administered - Total COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people - Total confirmed COVID-19 cases vs. deaths per million - Total confirmed COVID-19 deaths and cases per million people - Total confirmed deaths due to COVID-19 vs. population - Total number of people who received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine - Transit stations: How did the number of visitors change relative to before the pandemic?
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2023-12-12): FULL CLAIM: "Data from the New Zealand Ministry of Health shows that the COVID vaccines have killed over 10 million worldwide"; "the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population" On 30 November 2023, entrepreneur Steve Kirsch gave a talk at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, claiming that New Zealand data showed COVID-19 vaccines have "killed over 10 million worldwide". Kirsch, who had been invited to speak by the student group MIT Students for Open Inquiry, has a record of propagating vaccine misinformation. As documented in previous reviews by Health Feedback, Kirsch’s claims frequently rely on methodologically flawed analyses. [...] He concluded that COVID-19 vaccines were responsible for millions of deaths based on the fact that his analysis showed deaths rose in the first six months after vaccination in those aged 60 and above. The same trend was also seen in an overall analysis for all ages (shown in slides 136 to 140).
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2023-12-08): Steve Kirsch’s claim that New Zealand data shows COVID-19 vaccines killed millions is based on a flawed analysis [...] Factually inaccurate: New Zealand’s excess mortality statistics contradict the claim that COVID-19 vaccines have killed one in a thousand people. Over 90% of adults in New Zealand were vaccinated in 2021, a year that actually saw negative excess mortality, or fewer deaths compared to the pre-pandemic baseline. On 30 November 2023, entrepreneur Steve Kirsch gave a talk at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, claiming that New Zealand data showed COVID-19 vaccines have "killed over 10 million worldwide". Kirsch, who had been invited to speak by the student group MIT Students for Open Inquiry, has a record of propagating vaccine misinformation. As documented in previous reviews by Health Feedback, Kirsch’s claims frequently rely on methodologically flawed analyses.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2024-07-12): The COVID-19 pandemic led to setbacks in surveillance and immunization efforts. The suspension of immunization services and declines in immunization rates and surveillance across the globe left millions of children vulnerable to preventable diseases like measles.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2024-05-22): As of May 2, 2023, the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) had spread to almost every country in the world, and more than 6.86 million people had died after contracting the respiratory virus. Over 1.16 million of these deaths occurred in the United States. Almost every country and territory worldwide have been affected by the COVID-19 disease. At the end of 2021 the virus was once again circulating at very high rates, even in countries with relatively high vaccination rates such as the United States and Germany. As rates of new infections increased, some countries in Europe, like Germany and Austria, tightened restrictions once again, specifically targeting those who were not yet vaccinated. However, by spring 2022, rates of new infections had decreased in many countries and restrictions were once again lifted. [...] Number of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) deaths worldwide as of May 2, 2023, by country and territory [Graph], Worldometer, May 2, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1093256/novel-coronavirus-2019ncov-deaths-worldwide-by-country/
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2021-01-20): The COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding economic crisis are devastating families across the country. More than 20 million Americans have contracted COVID-19, and at least 370,000 have died. From big cities to small towns, too many Americans are barely scraping by, or not scraping by at all. And the pandemic has shined a light on the persistence of racial injustice in our healthcare system and our economy. The need to act is clear in the lines at food banks, the small businesses that are closed or closing, and the growing number of Americans experiencing housing insecurity. After nearly a year of the public health crisis, our nation remains in this dark winter of the pandemic and facing a deep economic crisis.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2021-04-24): September 28 — Global COVID-19 Deaths Surpass 1 Million The number of deaths linked to COVID-19 worldwide crosses the 1 million mark, according to The New York Times, surpassing the deaths caused by HIV, dysentery, malaria, influenza, cholera, and measles combined in 2020. [...] Data from Johns Hopkins University indicate that COVID-19 cases have topped 40 million worldwide as the United States and other countries see their highest rates of new cases in months. More than 1.1 million people have been killed by the virus worldwide so far, and nearly 220,000 of those deaths were in the United States, which remains the hardest-hit country in the world.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2023-05-10): Since 1918, there have been several other influenza pandemics, although none as deadly. A flu pandemic from 1957 to 1958 killed around 2 million people worldwide, including some 70,000 people in the United States, and a pandemic from 1968 to 1969 killed approximately 1 million people, including some 34,000 Americans. More than 12,000 Americans perished during the H1N1 (or "swine flu") pandemic that occurred from 2009 to 2010. The COVID-19 pandemic, which started in December 2019, spread around the world before an effective COVID-19 vaccine was made available in December 2020. By May of 2023, when the World Health Organization declared an end to the global coronavirus emergency, almost 7 million people had died of COVID-19.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2020-03-20): COVID vaccination has improved recently, although lagging the rest of Europe. By mid-June 2021, about nine percent of the population received a first dose of the vaccine and around 5 percent was fully vaccinated through the COVAX, the EU, and direct procurement programs. In addition, a portion of the population received the vaccine in neighboring countries. [...] Health: Additional health spending was reported at 1.4 percent of GDP in 2020. The state of health emergency triggered the implementation of a set of containment and mitigation measures, including strengthening laboratory diagnostic capacity, equipping treatment centers, improving drug availability, and the launch of a vast program to rehabilitate hospitals and to provide health centers with standard infrastructure to screen and treat people with COVID-19. As of June 10, 2021, there were 370,000 doses of COVID vaccines have been administrated so far. This accounts for 4.3 percent of the population that had received at least one vaccine dose, with 0.9 percent fully vaccinated. [...] The authorities launched a COVID-19 Vaccination Program targeting 60 percent of the population, about 8 million people, on 18 February 2021. As of June 29, 2021, the country had administered 770,709 1st doses and 544,888 2nd doses.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2021-12-14): Nearly 800,000 Americans have died so far during the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic, with more than half those deaths occurring during 2021.1 One year into the U.S. vaccination effort, much attention has focused on the stubborn persistence of the pandemic, which has been fueled by new, more- transmissible variants and the millions of Americans who have not gotten their shots. However, the positive impact of the rapid development and deployment of highly effective vaccines — the reduction in deaths and hospitalizations — has been less obvious. [...] The U.S. vaccination program campaign has profoundly altered the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic, preventing nearly 1.1 million deaths. Even with only about 60 percent of Americans vaccinated to date, the nation has dodged a massive wave of COVID-19 deaths that would have started as the Delta variant took hold in August 2021. Because of Delta’s rapid and nationwide spread, deaths due to COVID-19 would have far exceeded all previous peaks.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2020-03-05): All three points are true for all currently available international data sources on COVID-19 deaths: [...] Daily confirmed deaths per million people [...] Cumulative confirmed deaths per million people
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2023-03-08): Three COVID-19 vaccines - the monovalent COVID-19 Vaccine Pfizer/BioNTech, COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca and monovalent COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna – were used in the primary and booster vaccination campaigns up to the end of August 2022. Up to 23 August 2022, 53 million people received a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, 50 million received a second dose and 40 million received a third or booster dose. Safety monitoring throughout the deployment showed that the most common adverse reactions for all the COVID-19 vaccines were mild and self-limiting ‘reactogenicity’-type events such as fever, fatigue and injection site pain. View our existing record for a summary of information received via the Yellow Card scheme on these three vaccines as well as safety investigations carried out by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on these products. [...] For both the bivalent COVID-19 Vaccine Pfizer/BioNTech, and bivalent COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna the overall reporting rate is around 0.5 Yellow Cards per 1,000 doses administered. There is insufficient experience with COVID-19 Vaccine Novavax to be able to make similar estimates of reporting rates. [...] The overall reporting rate is in the order of 0.5 Yellow Cards per 1,000 doses administered for both the bivalent COVID-19 Vaccine Pfizer/BioNTech, and bivalent COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna. There is insufficient experience with COVID-19 Vaccine Novavax to be able to make similar estimates of reporting rates. It is known from the clinical trials that the more common side effects for all vaccines can occur at a rate of more than one in 10 doses (for example, local reactions or symptoms resembling transient flu-like symptoms).
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2020-04-22): The number of reported COVID-19 cases worldwide has passed two million, according to data compiled by researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. The milestone comes just two weeks after one million infections were recorded. The United States has the most cases — more than 600,000 — followed by Spain and Italy. [...] The COVID-19 pandemic could have infected 90% of the world’s population and killed 40.6 million people if no mitigation measures had been put in place to combat it, according to estimates from an influential modelling group at Imperial College London. [...] More than 2,100 people worldwide have now died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. On 20 February, Chinese authorities reported that 2,118 people there had died from the illness. Infections worldwide have topped 75,000; more than 74,000 are in China.
Claim: “the COVID vaccines have killed millions of people worldwide, an estimated 1 death per 1,000 doses on average in a standard population” (Steve Kirsch, 2023-12-01)
Evidence (2024-01-01): The COVID-19 crisis has interrupted childhood immunization efforts globally, with potentially deadly consequences [...] The COVID-19 crisis has interrupted childhood immunization efforts globally. Since March 2020, routine childhood immunization services have been disrupted on a scale not seen since the inception of the Expanded Programme on Immunization in the 1970s. More than half (53 per cent) of the 129 countries where data are available reported moderate-to-severe disruptions or a total suspension of vaccination services during March and April 2020. Measles and polio vaccination campaigns, in particular, have been badly hit, with suspended measles campaigns in 27 countries and suspended polio campaigns in 38 countries. At least 24 million people in 21 lower-income countries are at risk of missing out on vaccines against polio, measles, typhoid, yellow fever, cholera, rotavirus, human papillomavirus (HPV), meningitis A and rubella. Moreover, border closures resulting from COVID-19 outbreaks are resulting in potential vaccine shortages in at least 26 low- and middle-income countries.
Claim: Unapproved genetically modified organisms in the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines could permanently change our DNA (Julian Fidge, Rebekah Barnett, 2023-07-27)
Evidence (2023-07-27): Concerns over the potential health effects of residual DNA in biological products like vaccines aren’t new or unknown to regulatory agencies. Regulatory agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have recommended specific limits on the amount of residual DNA in a vaccine. DNA-containing vaccines, such as the chickenpox vaccine—a live attenuated vaccine containing a DNA virus—have also been widely used before the pandemic and have been shown to be safe.
Claim: Unapproved genetically modified organisms in the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines could permanently change our DNA (Julian Fidge, Rebekah Barnett, 2023-07-27)
Evidence (2023-11-17): FULL CLAIM: "Australian GP sues Pfizer and Moderna over unapproved GMOs in mRNA Covid vaccines. Dr Julian Fidge is seeking an injunction to stop the distribution of the mRNA Covid vaccines. But the human genome could already be permanently altered."; "In tests conducted on the mRNA monovalents and bivalents, genomics expert Kevin McKernan found dangerously excessive levels of DNA contamination" In November 2023, Gentry Gevers, host of the Break Away USA podcast, posted a screenshot of a tweet by journalist Rebekah Barnett on Instagram that read "Australian GP sues Pfizer and Moderna over unapproved GMOs in mRNA Covid vaccines". It also claimed "the human genome could already be permanently altered". [...] COVID-19 mRNA vaccines don’t contain organisms. As such, the claim that they contain "unapproved GMOs" is inaccurate. One example of a COVID-19 vaccine that does contain a GMO and is regulated as such is the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine, as it uses a modified adenovirus vector to deliver the genetic material of the spike protein into cells.
Claim: Unapproved genetically modified organisms in the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines could permanently change our DNA (Julian Fidge, Rebekah Barnett, 2023-07-27)
Evidence (2023-06-22): COVID-19 vaccines were developed and approved rapidly in response to the urgency created by the pandemic. No specific regulations existed at the time they were marketed. The regulatory agencies therefore adapted them as a matter of urgency. Now that the pandemic emergency has passed, it is time to consider the safety issues associated with this rapid approval. The mode of action of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines should classify them as gene therapy products (GTPs), but they have been excluded by regulatory agencies. Some of the tests they have undergone as vaccines have produced non-compliant results in terms of purity, quality and batch homogeneity. The wide and persistent biodistribution of mRNAs and their protein products, incompletely studied due to their classification as vaccines, raises safety issues. Post-marketing studies have shown that mRNA passes into breast milk and could have adverse effects on breast-fed babies. Long-term expression, integration into the genome, transmission to the germline, passage into sperm, embryo/fetal and perinatal toxicity, genotoxicity and tumorigenicity should be studied in light of the adverse events reported in pharmacovigilance databases. The potential horizontal transmission (i.e., shedding) should also have been assessed. In-depth vaccinovigilance should be carried out. [...] Keywords: COVID-19; drug regulation; gene therapy; mRNA vaccines; pharmacokinetics; vaccinovigilance. [...] COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines: A Retrospective Observational Pharmacovigilance Study.Clin Drug Investig. 2022 Dec;42(12):1065-1074. doi: 10.1007/s40261-022-01216-9. Epub 2022 Oct 23. Clin Drug Investig. 2022. PMID: 36274082 Free PMC article.
Claim: Unapproved genetically modified organisms in the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines could permanently change our DNA (Julian Fidge, Rebekah Barnett, 2023-07-27)
Evidence (2024-02-01): Despite being unsupported by research, claims about COVID-19 mRNA vaccines interfering with human DNA continue to circulate. This week, one in six adults (17%) surveyed in four states said they’d heard the claim in the last 7 days; 72% of those believed it could be true. Persistence of this claim may be due to concerns recently expressed by Florida’s Surgeon General that mRNA vaccines can carry foreign DNA into a cell. However, mRNA only enters the cell cytoplasm and does not enter the cell’s nucleus where human DNA is found. Messenger RNA (mRNA) in COVID-19 vaccines teaches cells to make a spike protein from the virus, helping the body fight the actual virus. Once the mRNA gives instructions to the cells, the body breaks it down so it cannot harm the body. The survey asked if people had heard that "DNA fragments in mRNA vaccines change your DNA, impact reproductive health, and can cause cancer." Some adults were more likely to hear the claim than others.
Claim: Unapproved genetically modified organisms in the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines could permanently change our DNA (Julian Fidge, Rebekah Barnett, 2023-07-27)
Evidence (2021-03-25): Both mRNA Covid-19 vaccines have passed the same safety tests and procedures any other vaccine would. [...] Covid-19 mRNA vaccines go one step back in the process. Once inside the body, the mRNA works to build the spike proteins on the surface of the Covid-19 virus. The body then responds by producing antibodies which attack those proteins.This means that if it is later infected, the body will be able to generate a faster and more effective immune response to the virus. [...] Some of the vaccines do contain GMOs. For example, the AstraZeneca vaccine uses a modified version of a virus, which carries the genetic instructions for producing the coronavirus spike protein into human cells, without replicating itself and infecting the body.
Claim: Unapproved genetically modified organisms in the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines could permanently change our DNA (Julian Fidge, Rebekah Barnett, 2023-07-27)
Evidence (2024-05-30): Most people are getting the Pfizer or the Moderna vaccines, which use genetic technology. Will they change my DNA? You’re right that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines use genetic technology and are messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccines. mRNA provides instructions to your cells to make certain proteins. But interestingly, this technology was studied to protect against other infections, including Ebola and other coronaviruses, long before there was even an illness called COVID-19. This is partially why these vaccines could be so quickly developed to protect against the COVID-19 virus. A lot of people are worried that because these vaccines use genetic technology, they might have long-term side effects or even change genes. But that’s not how these vaccines work. These vaccines are made up of a tiny piece of mRNA that triggers your own cells to make the spike protein of the virus that causes COVID-19. This protein provokes an immune response and gets your immune system ready to respond if the COVID-19 virus and its spike protein enter your body.