Today on her Facebook Page, Wendy Bell posted this:
We'll get to the Trumpian racism in a minute, no worries.
By simply asking the question "Do you feel the vaccines...are safe?" She's sowing doubt - doubt that's going to get more people sick.
Why?
Because there's more than enough evidence already to show that the vaccines are safe. The question is not up for debate. Someone's feelings don't matter in judging the safety of the vaccines.
From the CDC:
All COVID-19 vaccines were tested in clinical trials involving tens of thousands of people to make sure they meet safety standards and protect adults of different races, ethnicities, and ages, including adults over the age of 65, participated in the clinical trials. There were no serious safety concerns. The most common side effects were pain at the injection site and signs and symptoms like fever and chills. After a review of all the available information, ACIP and CDC agreed the lifesaving benefits of COVID-19 vaccination for LTCF residents outweigh the risks of possible side effects.
And here's a description of the trial phases for vaccine testing:
In the U.S., the FDA meticulously review the data from each clinical trial phase before approval or, in the case of public health emergencies, before granting emergency use authorization.
And:
A phase 1 trial focuses on the safety of the vaccine candidate. Escalating doses of the vaccine are given to healthy volunteers to determine side effects and tolerability.
Phase 2 trials expand their recruitment and may include participants with health conditions such as obesity, cancer, and diabetes. There is also active recruitment for participants of various demographics. The trial continues to test the safety of the vaccine and looks at the drug’s initial efficacy and how it affects the immune system.
Phase 3 trials recruit thousands of participants to measure the efficacy of the vaccine in preventing disease.
All this has already been done. The vaccines are safe.
If the Angel of Death were really interested in the health and safety of her audience, she would have asked the question something like this:
Even though the scientific evidence shows that the vaccines are safe, are you be reluctant to get one? And if so, why?
This could then trigger a discussion about phase trials, safety measures and so on. I suspect, however, Wendy Bell is more interested in a discussion that runs along the lines of this comment:
Yea, that's where St Barnabas' Angel of Death is going with this.
Perhaps Wendy should get her husband (he's a Doctor, doncha know) on the record about the safety of the vaccines.
Then there's Wendy's racism:
“Ultimately, diseases are about biology, not geography,” said Jeremy Konyndyk, who help lead the U.S. response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa. Descriptions of coronavirus that are winning praise in some GOP circles are racist, potentially undermine efforts to prevent spread of the disease and and threaten to harm relationships with China, health advocates say.Specifically, this from NBC:
Republican lawmakers have persisted in using "Wuhan virus" or "Chinese coronavirus," despite remarks by Democrats and the director of the CDC that such phrases are inaccurate and even racist.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., used the term "Wuhan virus" on Thursday in announcing that his Washington office was closing because of the illness. His comments came two days after the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, agreed when questioned at a House hearing that it was "absolutely wrong and inappropriate" to use such labels.
That was last March and Wendy Bell's still pushing the racism.
It must be so comforting for the powers-that-be at St Barnabas Health Care to be connected to such a warm and loving human being as the twice fired Wendy Bell.
