The CDC has are you ready identified a possible safety concern for some people who received Pfizer's covid shot they say the vaccine could be linked to increased Strokes in those who are aged 65 and up Dr Mark Siegel joins us now Dr a lot to get through with you but um in terms of this warning about vaccination and the increased risk of stroke that's.
Just for the Pfizer shot or for the moderna one as well morning Lauren it's just for the Pfizer shot and it's for the first 21 days after getting the shot in the age of 65 or older they showed it so it's called a signal and increased incidence of stroke they didn't find that with Medicare data they didn't find it with VA data they.
Didn't find it in the United Kingdom or Israel or even with that self-reporting system called veers that everyone talks about didn't find it it doesn't mean it's not real this is the vaccine data safety link which they take very seriously now they're going to try to investigate it over the next couple weeks and then the FDA advisory.
Committee will meet on it to see whether it's real a real Association or not there in the meantime it's a problem because those over 65 are a high-risk Group by definition and they're the group that we've been trying to get to take vaccines if they haven't had a vaccine in six months or if they haven't had covet so especially if they're.
Diabetic or have other underlying health problems so we have other Alternatives like moderna like novovax that we can offer in the meantime if people are saying Hey I want to wait and see what this ends up showing excuse my ignorance here doctor but that warning was for is it for the booster too or just for the initial two shots of the MRNA vaccine.
It's only for the bivalent booster they never found that with the original monovalent shot it's not like looking back over the last two years oh I got that it's only 21 days after getting this bivalent and we don't know if it's real or not yet that's what they're trying to figure out it seems like we don't know anything okay next one for.
You Doctor New York City Health officials well we know a lot our warning um a new coronavirus variant could be more likely to infect people who have been vaccinated I mean what's the point of getting vaccinated right now doctor well again I think that it's been shown that those who are high risk or over the age of 65 or have underlying health.
Conditions it decreases their risk of hospitalization I don't believe that study is really correct that if you have been vaccinated uh you're you're less likely you're more likely to get coveted I think that's a numbers game how many people in vaccinated I think with the real message here is that the new sub-variant is very very contagious.
We're underestimating it greatly it's generally mild so if you have been vaccinated or you had recent covet or I give you Pax livid you're not going to end up in the hospital you're not going to end up in the ICU we haven't messaged that enough that this is a milder version of the virus that we're looking at now one that we're getting more.
Likely to live with but we have tools to fight it a Washington Post columnist Dr Leanna Wen admits doctor that there's been over counting of covid deaths and hospitalizations right here in the U.S she says that's a problem what do you say I say that we've been talking about that on this show for two years now and the.
Washington Post is finally waking up to it that's not a surprise it's not really a headline because when you go into the hospital and you get tested and you have coveted you may actually be there for something else or maybe the covet is contributing to the problem maybe you end up getting severely ill from heart disease and we don't know what role of.
Covet that covet actually plays I'll tell you one thing that is that then recorded if you're if you're in the hospital for multiple reasons and you die is that recorded here in the U.S as a covid death or a stroke death it's well look it shouldn't be let's be clear if you have a cardiac arrest that's your cause of death if you.
Have a respiratory arrest that's your cause of death I think that the point that's being brought up here is maybe they're listing covenants the primary cause of death and they shouldn't be and we but we know I know for a long time now that not as many people are ending up in the ICU from covet period not as many people are ending up on the.
Ventilator from covid period but it's not something I pay no attention to it's a contributing factor that's the point this isn't news it may be news for the Washington Post it's not news for us here on the flip side Dr Siegel China has reported nearly 68 000 covid related deaths that's since the beginning of December alone I mean do you think.
That's a big number or not I mean they record it is if you're in the hospital and you have covid and something else they record that I believe as something else so they're not capturing all their coveted deaths it's quite the opposite right they have the opposite problem and they have the opposite problem right where nothing is covered where five.
Thousand deaths from the whole pandemic where you can't believe a word coming out of China right covet lockdowns covet zero didn't work now they open everything up and everybody's getting infected all at once the only thing you can actually believe coming out of China is some photo that shows people looking very sick rushing into the hospital or.
Lining up outside it's an absolute mess over there the thing we're worried about is if a new variant emerges complete new variant we're never even going to know about it we don't know the truth about what's happening in China and covet zero was an incredibly dumb policy that should never have been invoked anywhere and now the U-turn and now the Lunar New.
Year is upon us and two billion plus trips are going to be happening from the city centers where they have hospitals to the rural parts so Chinese can see their families which they haven't seen in years and the numbers are going to get even worse Dr Siegel good to see you thank you very much great to see you
