‘Have You Vaccinated Your Children?’: Rand Paul Grills Moderna CEO Over Adverse Vaccine Reactions

Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul grilled Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel on Wednesday over whether the shot is safe for teen boys, citing an increased risk of myocarditis.

Bancel testified before the Senate on raising the cost of COVID-19 vaccines.

“Is there a higher incidence of myocarditis among adolescent males ages 16-24 after taking your vaccine?” Paul asked.

“We care deeply about safety and we’re working closely with the CDC to –”

“Pretty much a yes or no,” Paul interjected. “Is there a higher incidence of myocarditis among boys 16-24 after they take your vaccine?”

“The data … has shown there’s less [risk] for people who get the vaccine versus people who get the COVID infection.”

“You’re saying that for ages 16-24 among males who take the covid vaccine, their risk of myocarditis is less than people who get the disease?”

“That is my understanding.”

“That is not true,” Paul shot back, adding six reviewed papers to the record that have shown an increased risk and claiming that Moderna’s president recently acknowledged the increased risk in myocarditis.

“The fact that you can’t say it in public is quite disturbing. Do you think it’s scientifically sound to mandate three vaccines for adolescent boys?”

Bancel tried to avoid answering the question before Paul pushed back and noted Bancel “has been advocating for it.”

Paul then noted that that myocarditis is likely to appear after the second dosage of the vaccine and questioned why there is no conversation happening around reducing the recommendation down to one dose. Currently the CDC recommends getting three doses of Moderna for those between the ages of 6 – 17, calling vaccines “safe and effective.”

“I’ll ask you this question: your 16-year-old had COVID, your 16-year-old gets better and now has recovered from COVID. You vaccinate them and they get myocarditis, are you gonna give them two more vaccines? Your child, give them two more vaccines?”

“I’m not a physician, I would have to discuss –” Bancel said.

“You have children!” Paul said. “Have you vaccinated your children?”

“I have.”

“How many times?”

“Three or four times,” Bancel said.

“The CDC said if your 15 or 16-year-old gets COVID, recovers, takes the vaccine and gets myocarditis, is hospitalized with elevated heart enzymes and is very sick, the CDC says as soon as he gets better, vaccinate him again,” Paul explained. “Do you know how many American parents think that’s a rational, reasonable thing to do? Do you know how many countries don’t do this for children?”

Paul then listed several countries like Sweden, Finland, Norway, England, France and Germany that have stricter guidelines when it comes to vaccinating children.

“You sit here and act like you’ve never heard of myocarditis and you don’t think it’s an increased risk for young, adolescent males when all of the studies who isolate people out, by age, have found that yes, there’s an increased risk after taking your vaccine,” Paul said. “Pfizer too but worse with Moderna.”

Bancel then said he acknowledges the risk of myocarditis but argued that the risk of contracting it from COVID itself is higher than contracting it from the vaccine.

Research has indicated Moderna’s COVID-19 shot may cause two to three times as many heart-related side effects as Pfizers, with the rates of myocarditis and pericarditis in individuals within 21 days of getting their second shot were 35.6 and 22.9 per million doses for Moderna compared to 12.6 and 9.4 per million for Pfizer. The connection was most pronounced in younger men.

Reporting from Daily Caller.

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