An email obtained by the Epoch Times has revealed that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) detected a signal for myocarditis and pericarditis for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart, while pericarditis is inflammation of the tissue around the heart.
The email, dated May 13, 2021, was written by Fran Cunningham, a VA official, and addressed to Dr. Tom Shimabukuro and Dr. Lauri Markowitz, two top vaccine safety employees with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Cunningham stated that data from the VA Center For Medication Safety showed “a signal for myocarditis/pericarditis… with Pfizer vaccine following the 1st dose.”
Surprisingly, neither the VA nor the CDC shared this discovery with the public. Inquiries sent to Shimabukuro and Markowitz were redirected to a CDC spokesperson, who claimed that the VA later determined the signal “was not a true signal.” This lack of transparency raises concerns about the CDC's handling of vaccine safety information.
In June 2021, during a private meeting involving CDC and VA officials, it was stated that no signal had been found in a surveillance system. However, no audio or transcript of this meeting has been made public, leaving many questioning the validity of these claims.
The decision to withhold this information from the public is highly criticized by Brian Hooker, chief scientific officer of the nonprofit Children's Health Defense. He believes that both the CDC and VA had a responsibility to inform the public about the myocarditis signal but chose to bury it in order to avoid causing “vaccine hesitancy” by revealing the actual risks associated with the Pfizer vaccine.
This revelation adds to the growing concerns about the CDC's aggressive promotion of COVID-19 vaccines throughout the pandemic. The agency has been keen on encouraging vaccination to protect individuals from the virus, but the lack of transparency regarding potential risks raises questions about their motives.
Interestingly, it was discovered that the VA was the first federal agency to mandate COVID-19 vaccination for its workers. Even after many other agencies rescinded their vaccine mandates, the VA continued to enforce its own. This stance further highlights the agency's commitment to vaccination despite potential risks.
