FALSE: Pfizer/BioNTech cut EU vaccine deliveries because of side effects

At a glance:

• Claim: Pfizer and BioNTech cut their COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to the EU on January 22 because their vaccine has caused seizures or death.
• Rating: FALSE
• The facts: Reports say that Pfizer and BioNTech temporarily cut their EU deliveries because of improvements to their production site in the Belgian town of Puurs. It was not mentioned in the reports if it was due to any side effects of the vaccine.
• Why we fact checked this: This was sent to Rappler for verification through Newsbreak’s Facebook Messenger. 

Complete details:

A video that is circulating on messaging apps claims that Pfizer and BioNTech cut their COVID-19 vaccine deliveries to the EU on January 22 because their vaccine caused seizures or death.

The video does not have a logo or link to its original source, but the speaker can be identified as Lynn Agno, the blogger who runs the “Lynn Channel” Facebook page. 

In the video, Agno shows videos of people having seizures, supposedly due to the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. She then reads a report that says the companies “cut back vaccine deliveries to EU at short notice” and then puts the two together, saying the deliveries were cut because the vaccines caused seizures and even deaths. 

This video was forwarded to Rappler through Newsbreak’s Facebook Messenger. 

This claim is false. Reports say that deliveries of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was cut in the EU because of improvements to their plant in Puurs, Belgium. The improvements, they said, will increase the doses available in February and March. 

This was reported on by a number of media outlets from different countries, including DW News by German public international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW), the local Canadian publication Halifax Today, Canada’s CBC News, and Reuters.  

None of the reports mentioned the vaccine’s side effects as the reason for the cut in deliveries. 

On November 18, 2020, Pfizer and BioNTech reported that they completed Phase 3 of their vaccine study with 95% efficacy against COVID-19 beginning 28 days after the first dose. They also said that there were no serious safety concerns observed among their 43,000 enrolled participants. The only severe and undesirable events that had greater than 2% frequency were fatigue and headache. 

According to the World Health Organization’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization, Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine is safe and effective. It is also one of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s authorized and recommended vaccines against COVID-19. – Vernise Tantuco/Rappler.com

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