Fauci Did Not Say COVID-19 Vaccines Spread Diseases
The Claim
Dr. Anthony Fauci admitted that coronavirus vaccines are spreading disease.
News posted on
Emerging story
Social media users shared screenshots of the post making this claim under the byline Ethan Huff. Over the course of a week in August, screenshots of the claim spread across Twitter and Instagram, with one post receiving more than 250 likes.
Misbar’s Analysis
The original post misrepresented Fauci’s remarks about “breakthrough infections” on a CBS interview that aired on Aug. 1. Speaking on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” Fauci, the topmost coronavirus expert in the US, was asked about the Delta variant, which is spreading rapidly across the country.
He confirmed that the Delta variant spreads “easily” “from person to person,” adding that there is no vaccine against the coronavirus that fully protects against it. Therefore, “breakthrough infections” — when a person gets infected even after getting fully vaccinated — are expected to occur.
Fauci went on, saying the level of the virus in vaccinated individuals with breakthrough infections is similar to the level in unvaccinated individuals with infections. While breakthrough infections happen because no vaccine is 100% effective, the vaccines themselves are not spreading diseases. Vaccines dramatically decrease the likelihood that an individual will experience severe symptoms from the coronavirus if they are infected with it.
Doctors and health officials all over the US have for months urged people to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.
“If you have had COVID-19 before, please still get vaccinated,” Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said. “This study shows you are twice as likely to get infected again if you are unvaccinated. Getting the vaccine is the best way to protect yourself and others around you, especially as the more contagious Delta variant spreads around the country.”
Additionally, the original poster Ethan Huff does not appear to be a credible reporter. His post contains inflammatory language about the CBS show and urges people not to get vaccinated. Among many political circles, there are questions over his validity as a reporter.
He originally posted his claim to Natural News, a site that frequently publishes conspiracy-pseudoscience claims, according to Media Bias Fact Check, a tool that measures credibility among various outlets.
