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A popular video that adds a voiceover to footage from a television interview with National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. <\/span>Anthony Fauci<\/span><\/a> inaccurately questions the efficacy of one of the COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the U.S.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo the vaccine don’t protect you from covid ???\u201d reads the Facebook video post title. In fact, as Fauci explained in the interview, the vaccine does protect against <\/span>COVID-19<\/span><\/a>, which is the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. It may not, however, protect against infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which sometimes <\/span>does not<\/span><\/a> make people sick.<\/span><\/p>\n The video runs about two minutes long and contains a segment of an<\/span> interview<\/span><\/a> CNN\u2019s Chris Cuomo did with Fauci on Dec. 10. The interview<\/span> followed<\/span><\/a> news<\/span><\/a> that an independent advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration had voted that the benefits of the<\/span> Pfizer\/BioNTech vaccine<\/span><\/a> outweigh its risks — all but ensuring the agency would greenlight the vaccine. The next day, the FDA followed through and<\/span> granted<\/span><\/a> the vaccine an emergency use authorization, the first for any COVID-19 vaccine in America.<\/span><\/p>\n Another vaccine<\/a> from the biotech company Moderna went through the <\/span>same<\/span><\/a> process<\/span><\/a> a week later. That vaccine <\/span>also<\/span><\/a> protects against disease, but it’s not known yet if it prevents infection.<\/span><\/p>\n The clip begins with Cuomo asking Fauci why it will still be necessary to wear a face mask even after a person is vaccinated. Fauci explains this is because while the vaccine does an excellent job at protecting people from falling ill, it might not prevent infection — and initially there will still be a lot of virus circulating in the population.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou could be prevented from getting clinical disease, and still have the virus that is in your nasopharynx because you could get infected,\u201d he said. \u201cWe’re not sure, at this point, that the vaccine protects you against getting infected.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Here, a voiceover cuts in to repeat Fauci\u2019s last sentence in a suggestive tone, before allowing him to continue: \u201cWe know for sure it’s very, very good, 94%, 95% in protecting you against clinically recognizable disease.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n At this point a voiceover interjects, \u201cClinically recognizable disease, but not COVID?\u201d The question insinuates that there is something suspicious about what Fauci said, but there isn\u2019t. He\u2019s only making a distinction between disease and infection.<\/span><\/p>\n Specifically, the Pfizer\/BioNTech vaccine was tested in a phase 3 randomized trial in which people were <\/span>counted<\/span><\/a> as having COVID-19 if they developed at least one symptom of the disease, such as a fever, cough or shortness of breath, and tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus within four days.<\/span><\/p>\n Using this definition, which is quite inclusive, the vaccine was 95% effective in preventing COVID-19 disease in adults.<\/span><\/p>\n Moderna\u2019s vaccine, for which the general results<\/a> were <\/span>known<\/span> at the time of the CNN interview, was similarly effective<\/a> — 94.1% — based on a <\/span>COVID-19 case definition<\/span><\/a> of at least two systemic symptoms, such as fever, chills or headache, and one respiratory symptom, along with a positive test for SARS-CoV-2.<\/span><\/p>\n The trials, however, did not immediately evaluate how well the vaccines were able to prevent infection. This is particularly relevant for COVID-19, because while many people develop at least some symptoms, <\/span>some proportion<\/span><\/a> of people do not. It therefore remains possible the two-dose shot keeps people healthy — the primary goal for the vaccines — but that vaccinated people can still become infected and unwittingly transmit the virus. Hence, Fauci\u2019s advice, at least for now, to continue to wear a mask and follow public health precautions, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also <\/span>endorsed<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n As we\u2019ve <\/span>written before<\/span><\/a>, there is a good chance that the authorized COVID-19 shots will help limit transmission to some degree, as that is still common with vaccines that cannot shield against infection but do defend against illness. But it nevertheless remains an open question for the COVID-19 vaccines.<\/span><\/p>\n The video misleads again when the voiceover repeats Fauci\u2019s statement that the vaccine protected people against “severe disease” and then asks, \u201cWell, then, what does he call COVID, if that\u2019s not serious?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n That misunderstands COVID-19 and how differently it affects various people. As we\u2019ve already noted, infection with SARS-CoV-2 does not always produce symptoms in people. For <\/span>most<\/span><\/a> individuals, the symptoms are relatively mild. But in <\/span>some patients<\/span><\/a>, particularly those who are older or who have certain health conditions, COVID-19 can be deadly — and for others, symptoms can <\/span>linger<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Fauci was referring to the ability of the vaccine to prevent a severe case of COVID-19. In both the <\/span>Pfizer\/BioNTech<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Moderna<\/span><\/a> trials, severe disease was defined as having confirmed COVID-19 and at least one sign of serious illness, such as a blood oxygen level below 93%, respiratory failure or admission to the intensive care unit.<\/span><\/p>\n In the Moderna trial, all 30 cases of severe COVID-19 occurred in the placebo group at the time of the FDA\u2019s evaluation. One severe case was <\/span>later identified<\/span><\/a> in the vaccine group. <\/span>Few volunteers<\/span><\/a> in the Pfizer\/BioNTech trial developed severe disease, making it difficult to come to firm conclusions, but as the FDA noted in its <\/span>briefing<\/span><\/a>, \u201cthe case split does suggest protection from severe COVID-19 disease.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n E<\/em>ditor\u2019s note:\u00a0<\/span><\/em>FactCheck.org does not accept advertising. We rely on grants and individual donations from people like you. Please consider a donation. Credit card donations may be made through\u00a0<\/span>our \u201cDonate\u201d page<\/a>. If you prefer to give by check, send to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, 202 S. 36th St., Philadelphia, PA 19104.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>COVID-19: Frequently Asked Questions<\/span><\/a>.\u201d CDC. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 19 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): How is it transmitted?<\/span><\/a>\u201d WHO. 9 July 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Cuomo Prime Time<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Transcript. CNN. 10 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee December 10, 2020 Meeting Announcement<\/span><\/a>.\u201d FDA. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 7 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>FDA advisory panel endorses Pfizer\/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine<\/span><\/a>.\u201d STAT. 10 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n McDonald, Jessica. \u201c<\/span>A Guide to Pfizer\/BioNTech\u2019s COVID-19 Vaccine<\/span><\/a>.\u201d FactCheck.org. 9 Dec 2020, updated 7 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n McDonald, Jessica. \u201c<\/span>A Guide to Moderna\u2019s COVID-19 Vaccine<\/span><\/a>.\u201d FactCheck.org. 22 Dec 2020, updated 7 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>FDA Takes Key Action in Fight Against COVID-19 By Issuing Emergency Use Authorization for First COVID-19 Vaccine<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Press release. FDA. 11 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee December 17, 2020 Meeting Announcement<\/span><\/a>.\u201d FDA. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 7 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>FDA Takes Additional Action in Fight Against COVID-19 By Issuing Emergency Use Authorization for Second COVID-19 Vaccine<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Press release. FDA. 18 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cVaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting.\u201d <\/span>FDA briefing document for Moderna COVID-19 vaccine<\/span><\/a>. 17 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cVaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting.\u201d <\/span>FDA briefing document for Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine<\/span><\/a>. 10 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Moderna\u2019s COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate Meets its Primary Efficacy Endpoint in the First Interim Analysis of the Phase 3 COVE Study<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Press release. Moderna. 16 Nov 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n Johansson, Michael A. et al. \u201c<\/span>SARS-CoV-2 Transmission From People Without COVID-19 Symptoms<\/span><\/a>.\u201d JAMA Network Open. 7 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19 Vaccination<\/span><\/a>.\u201d CDC. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 25 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n McDonald, Jessica and Catalina Jaramillo. \u201c<\/span>Viral Video Makes False and Unsupported Claims About Vaccines<\/span><\/a>.\u201d FactCheck.org. 22 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>What to Do If You Are Sick<\/span><\/a>.\u201d CDC. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 31 Dec 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>People at Increased Risk<\/span><\/a>.\u201d CDC. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 4 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Long-Term Effects of COVID-19<\/span><\/a>.\u201d CDC. Accessed 26 Jan 2021, last updated 13 Nov 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201c<\/span>Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions<\/span><\/a>.\u201d FDA. 5 Jan 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n The post Video Misinterprets Fauci\u2019s Comments on COVID-19 Vaccine<\/a> appeared first on FactCheck.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n This post was originally published on FactCheck.org<\/a>. <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The post Video Misinterprets Fauci\u2019s Comments on COVID-19 Vaccine<\/a> appeared first on FactCheck.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1376,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3505,3506],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17327"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1376"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17327"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17327\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25271,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17327\/revisions\/25271"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.factcheck.org\/UploadedFiles\/SciCHECKsquare_4-e1430162915812.png\")
<\/a>The video<\/a>, which has racked up more than <\/span>468,000 views<\/span><\/a> and 14,000 shares, was posted by TAHO, a group that claims to be a non-governmental organization \u201cto encourage the youth in farming activities.\u201d The group’s Facebook photo includes an image of a map of Africa, and the group is managed by individuals in Ghana and the United Kingdom. Many of its posts, including the Fauci video post, end with the phrase, \u201cAfrican Youth Reflect.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\nSources<\/h2>\n
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A highly viewed Facebook video distorts a CNN interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci to falsely suggest that a COVID-19 vaccine authorized in the U.S doesn\u2019t \u201cprotect you from covid.\u201d The vaccine does protect against COVID-19, which is the disease caused by the coronavirus; Fauci was simply cautioning that it may not prevent someone from contracting the virus.<\/p>\n