VAERS letter reflects an anti-vaccine bias

Dear Editor:
In a letter to the editor in last week’s paper the VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System) website was cited as having reported over 17,000 deaths in the U.S. had occurred as a result of the COVID-19 vaccine. This is a classic example of a person who has an anti-vaccine bias purposely, or negligently, ignoring mitigating factors or misunderstanding information available on the internet.
The VAERS site is monitored by the CDC and the FDA and is provided for people to report adverse vaccination reactions. A report to the site can be submitted by ANYONE, not just doctors, nurse practitioners, or other health care professionals. The site stipulates that these reports sometime lack details and/or contain errors and can be totally fabricated. One statement on the site estimated that in many of the reports, only about 25 percent of needed information was included that would allow for a definite decision that the reaction was actually caused by the vaccine. From that, the site stated that the data alone reported on the site could not be used to definitely determine if the vaccine caused the reported event. Correlation does not necessarily imply causation. Just because an undesirable event happens after receiving a vaccine does not automatically imply that the vaccine is responsible.
Experts review the reports submitted to the VAERS site and determine which ones merit further review and follow up with more research into the details to verify the claim or decide that the reaction was so minor as to be ignored, or was unrelated to the vaccine. But due to several factors, these follow-up results are not then published on the VAERS site so people do not know these conclusions. This is why you cannot simply look at the data on the VAERS site and make conclusions, you don’t have access to the data showing how many of the claims are actually true and are actually serious.
In a June 18, 2010 article by Jonathan, Jarry M.Sc., the author states “It is easy for an anti-vaccine activist -- someone who is categorically opposed to vaccines and who sees themselves as a hero saving humanity from a costly mistake -- to simply cherry-pick scary VAERS reports and present them as proof that a vaccine is known to cause serious harm and death, a tactic we could call “VAERS scare.” VAERS, when utilized in the right way by the right people, can be a fantastic early warning system to detect vaccine adverse reactions, especially those that were too rare to be detected in the clinical trials that preceded approval of the vaccine. It is a tool and like any tool it can unfortunately be misused.”
Have we learned nothing from the success of vaccines for polio, measles, small pox, chicken pox, flu, mumps, shingles, etc.? If we are going to be able to return to any sort of pre-COVID normalcy in this country, we have to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of those that we have required for decades in order to bring it under control. This isn’t a political issue, it’s science and health, and only by getting our vaccination numbers high enough will we be able to control the spread of the COVID virus and prevent further mutations.
Monte Burger,
Aurora

Think twice before giving COVID vaccine to children
Dear Editor:
“We’re never going to learn about how safe this vaccine is unless we start giving it,” stated FDA committee member Dr. Eric Ruban. There is an alternative to giving a product to most of a generation: animal studies or restricting use to a defined group most likely to benefit, with close follow-up.
Since the CDC came out recommending the COVID vaccine for 5 to 11 year-olds, we have seen many voices jump on the bandwagon -- from Big Bird to Superhero commercials. Before you rush your child in to get the vaccine, there are things you need to be aware of.
The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons has these cautions:
In the testing, only 1,518 children received the shots, 750 received a placebo. This is far too few to see uncommon side effect, such as myocarditis, as Pfizer admits.
Follow-up was for two months in one group and only 2.5 weeks in another. The Pfizer application states that long-term sequelae of post-vaccination myocarditis in participants 5 to 12 years of age will be studied after the vaccine is authorized for children.
The children were not examined for mild, asymptomatic myocarditis, which might cause long-term damage.
The only FDA approved product, BioNTech’s Comirnaty (not yet available in the US) is required to do studies on myocarditis lasting five years.
We do not and cannot know the long-term effects on cancer, fertility, or autoimmune diseases.
Monthly safety report cards on the three available vaccines are supposedly required, but none have been produced or released.
The dosage for children is one-third the adult dose.  Pediatric dosage is generally determined by weight.
The vaccine (even according to its maker) does not prevent getting COVID or transmitting it.
In order for parents to give truly informed consent, they need complete information about possible side effects, such as the outcome for Maddy de Garay, a 12-year-old whose public-spirited parents enrolled her in a trial. Post-shot, she experienced excruciating pain, a two-month hospitalization, and is now in a wheelchair. Pfizer is not commenting.  The reaction may be “extremely rare” but most parents would decline to take even a 1 in 1 million chance of this outcome.
Think twice before giving the consent for your children to receive the COVID vaccine.  Remember, the drug companies have no liability.  You (and your insurance) will be on your own.  Most importantly, some adverse effects will not be able to be fixed.
The full articles can be found here:
https://aapsonline.org/aaps-statement-on-covid-shots-for-children/
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/304124
Iris Bergen,
Hamilton County resident

Encouraging moms to stay home with children
Dear Editor:
Seven born, raised and out the door in the blink of an eye. Yes, kids grow up too fast! I was sad to read in the paper which stated we “needed” more daycare for children. I want to encourage moms to stay home with their children. This letter is to those who really want to stay home with their children, but feel it is financially impossible. Insurance is an issue.
Believe me, to stay home with the children is a walk by faith and not by sight. There were times when much food wasn’t put on the table, but God was faithful. He supplied. I remember one time dividing up celery and carrots to last until next paycheck. I knew a family gathering was on the horizon. I looked through my cupboards to see what I could possibly bring. I found a bag of dried beans, a little molasses, brown sugar, the ingredients needed for baked beans. My cry to God was, “Please have my sister ask me to bring baked beans!” The phone rang, my answer was, “Yes, I’d love to bring baked beans.” Believe me, I thanked the Lord. Prior to that time and even since, I have not been asked to bring baked beans.
There is a key to this issue – tithe. I know my parents were faithful tithers, but I had not followed suit. When I married Greg, he said, “We will tithe.” I took a big gulp on that one. We didn’t have good jobs -- ski bums in Breckenridge. I got pregnant. Greg had not taken all classes needed to sit for the CPA exam. Back to school. Long story.
All through the years, I have seen God move in mighty ways on our behalf. Text me if you want encouragement/guidance to stay home. 402-604-1458
Caroline Epp,
Giltner