COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Trial in the US: 4,400 Deaths Reported

The World Health Organization (WHO) will transfer technology and provide training on the production of mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.

Indonesia is one of the countries that will receive this training, along with Bangladesh, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Serbia.

The Indonesian representative designated to participate in the WHO training is the state-owned pharmaceutical company Bio Farma.

"We certainly welcome the appointment of Bio Farma as the only vaccine company in Indonesia to receive mRNA technology transfer. God willing, we will utilize this trust to support national self-reliance in independently producing vaccines using the latest technology," said Bio Farma's President Director, Honesti Basyir, in a press release on his official website on Thursday (February 24th).

"As a first step, in accordance with the Transfer of Technology program, Bio Farma will learn about the production of Covid-19 vaccines using mRNA technology," he added.

What is an mRNA Vaccine?

Historically, vaccines based on mRNA technology have been researched since the 1960s. However, mRNA vaccines for Covid-19 were only developed from mid-2020 onwards.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), vaccines are generally made from weakened viruses.

However, mRNA vaccines are different. These vaccines are made from engineered genetic material capable of triggering an immune response against a specific virus.

Currently, several types of mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines have been tested on humans and distributed globally, namely Pfizer-BioNTech (BNT162b2) and Moderna (mRNA-1273).

On its official website, the CDC states that mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines can provide protection against Covid-19 without the potential for causing serious illness.

Examining the Results of mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine Trials in the US

Although claimed to be safe, thousands of people in the United States (US) have experienced serious side effects, and even death, after receiving mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines.

This was revealed in a research report titled "Safety of mRNA vaccines administered during the initial 6 months of the US Covid-19 vaccination programme" published in the global medical journal *The Lancet* on Monday (March 7th).

According to the study, during the period from December 2020 to June 2021, approximately 298 million doses of mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines were distributed in the US, comprising 167 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech and 131 million doses of Moderna.

During this period, the US government's Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) recorded approximately 340,000 reported adverse events from recipients of mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines.

Approximately 164,000 reports came from recipients of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, and 175,000 from recipients of the Moderna vaccine.

Details of the side effects or Adverse Events Following Immunization (AEFI) recorded in the US are as follows:

1. Pfizer-BioNTech (BNT162b2)

* Non-serious symptoms: 150,486 people (91.4%)
* Serious symptoms: 12,078 people (7.3%)
* Deaths: 2,105 people (1.3%)

2. Moderna (mRNA-1273)

* Non-serious symptoms: 162,977 people (92.7%)
* Serious symptoms: 10,448 people (5.9%)
* Deaths: 2,391 people (1.4%)

In total, recipients of mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines in the US who experienced non-serious symptoms numbered 313,499 (92.1%), serious symptoms 22,527 (6.6%), and deaths 4,496 (1.3%).

Common non-serious symptoms included headache, fatigue, fever, and skin rash.

Common serious symptoms included shortness of breath, high fever, and chest pain.

Approximately 81% of deaths occurred in the 60+ age group, with the majority of deaths occurring on the first and second days after vaccination.

This research report emphasizes the need for a robust vaccine surveillance system to provide data for policymakers, vaccine manufacturers and providers, healthcare professionals, and to educate the public about Covid-19 vaccine safety.

(See Also: Global Covid-19 Vaccine Stock Dominated by AstraZeneca)