Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
I’m sure by now many of you have heard that RFK Jr.’s vaccine advisory board has “leaked” a report claiming that there is a chronic condition, similar to LongCOVID, that is caused by the COVID19 vaccine. I wanted to take some time with it before I posted, and now I have, so here comes a thread.

Confidential Report Calls for ...
Confidential Report Calls for Sweeping Changes to Track Covid Vaccine Harms

A federal work group says Covid vaccine injuries deserve urgent attention, even as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. shifts away from talking about vaccine policy.

The New York Times
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
The report leads with results of a poll alleging that a quarter of respondents know “someone who died” from the COVID19 vaccine. This is not science. This is not a foundation on which to build a scientific report. There are no credible data supporting this claim. Just testimonials.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
What they are trying to do is create the illusion that LongCOVID is actually a “vaccine injury”. Yet they don’t address the fact that LongCOVID existed long before vaccines did. In fact, the rate of long-term effects after COVID19 itself has been falling since the pandemic began.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
If vaccines caused a condition indistinguishable from LongCOVID, then rates should have exploded after the introduction of vaccines. In fact, the rates have fallen over time, and those who are vaccinated have a lower risk. medicine.washu.edu/news/risk-of...

Risk of long COVID declined ov...
Risk of long COVID declined over course of pandemic | WashU Medicine

Drop attributed mostly to vaccination but remaining risk still significant

WashU Medicine
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
They claim that extant vaccine surveillance systems don’t follow long-term effects. This is false. They have the capability to do exactly this. So the first thing they should have done is to look at the available data. They didn’t do that. They are just throwing up chaff.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
They then go on to propose an ICD-10 diagnostic code for the alleged post-COVID19 vaccine condition. There are two fatal flaws in this exercise: 1. The condition has not been proven to exist. 2. This is not at all the role of ACIP.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
Creating new diagnostic codes for a phantom condition with no credible evidence to support it is a waste of time, and likely was only done to continue to cast doubt on existing institutions that have tracked vaccine safety for decades, and to further undermine trust in vaccines.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
In addition, it’s frankly bizarre that this document was “leaked” to the infamous nest of COVID19 misinformation—the Brownstone Institute. If they plan to discuss this at this week’s ACIP meeting, it should be up on the website with the agenda. Why isn’t it? Why all of the cloak and dagger?
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
Because framing this report as a leak of a “confidential report” to the Brownstone Institute gets those conspiracy juices flowing. It sets the stage for claims that the people who wrote it are being “silenced” due to political pressure. These people haven’t been “silenced” by anyone.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD
In fact, quite frankly, they won’t shut up. And that is a shame, because this is not science. But this administration ONLY cares about a facade—about further undermining trust by throwing out garbage and casting themselves as heroes. They aren’t. They are conmen drunk with power.
Mar 16 at 6:31pmWeb
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
And as we sit here, there is less than 48 hours before this meeting is scheduled to begin. Yet we have no agenda and no materials posted. Instead what we have is a “report” which at its core is nothing more than a written version of Loose Change, the infamous 9/11 “truther” video.
Show threadElizabeth Jacobs, PhD5d ago
I want to be clear because I already got someone trying to strawman me on this. I BELIEVE STRONGLY THAT VACCINE SAFETY MUST BE CONSTANTLY MONITORED, WITHOUT EXCEPTION. I AM STRONGLY OPPOSED TO CLAIMS MADE WITHOUT CREDIBLE EVIDENCE BY PUTATIVELY SCIENTIFIC BODIES.