It would seem about the right time to see a pivot from up top. I don't know how others feel but without any sort of pivot and reassessment I don't know how much trust our institutions have left. People speak of Joe Rogan on Twitter like his podcast is fringe while in reality it is the modern day version of the Oprah show. By the numbers his audience is the mainstream.
You ok? You know this is where you're going to cross the line, right? Get ready for major mud slinging and push back. They're going to bring the kitchen sink, and everything you've throw down it, at you.
Thank you as always for putting things in perspective! It’s been a LONG week here in LA County, CA! My teens’ high school is now treating my teens as “unvaccinated” because they have not been boosted. Both teens have gotten two doses of Pfizer and we are hesitant to boost our son because of the risk of myocarditis. However, because he isn’t boosted, he got placed on “modified quarantine” this past week - where he can go to all of his academic classes, masked, eat lunch with friends outside, unmasked, but was NOT allowed to go to varsity soccer practices, masked!? How does that make any logical sense? It is honestly infuriating!! He had to get two negative tests (one on the 5th and one yesterday, on the 8th) in order to be allowed to go to soccer Monday, and now needs to test every Monday in order to continue playing soccer, just like his unvaccinated teammates… it’s like they ignore the fact that he has two doses of mRNA vaccine in him and is protected from severe disease, and if they all wear masks (surgical or N95/KN95 now required), then shouldn’t they all be allowed to both go to their classes, AND return to their sports?! Especially since soccer is outside in the fresh air and all are masked?! I’m so perplexed by the lack of common sense that I’m beside myself…
I follow breakthrough cases, excavating the data from the most obscure location on a DPH website. The dropping VE has been coming on since November. Even the most heavily vaccinated and boosted cities or states have breakthrough infections exceeding 50%.
Dear Vinay. The UC system is mandating the booster. My son can only go back to the Berkeley campus as a freshman if he complies. I am worried for his safety given the risk of myocarditis. Plus, now, they will be mostly virtual for the first 2 weeks. Could you send your thoughts on lack of efficiency and higher risk to the office of the President of the UC system, as well as to the UC Berkeley medical office, Dr Anna Harte and Guy Colette? My husband tired and got a curt response. So our voice won't matter. Th and ou for all that you do!
Please read the research articles cited at "What every MD, immunologist, virologist and epidemiologist should know about vitamin D and the immune system" https://vitamindstopscovid.info/05-mds/ .
The immune system needs at least 50 ng/mL circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D for strong innate and adaptive responses, and to minimise the risk of hyper-inflammatory immune dysregulation. Without proper vitamin D3 supplementation - such as (70 kg 154 lb bodyweight) 0.125mg 5000 IU / day - most people's 25(OH)D levels are 5 to 25 ng/mL.
These mRNA and adenovirus vector COVID-19 "vaccines" have always been the 3rd best way of tackling the pandemic, after proper vitamin D3 supplementation and multiple early treatments, including melatonin, vitamin C, magnesium and ivermectin: https://c19early.com . For most people, the most urgently needed early treatment is boosting 25(OH)D ASAP.
The current vaccines make sense for those with obesity and other serious comorbidities even if their 25(OH)D levels are 50 ng/mL or more and if they have access to multiple early treatments. They have never been the best option for most people, and are now close to useless for reducing Omicron transmission. They provide significant benefits by way of protection from severe disease, but this is narrow and somewhat escaped by Omicron.
There's no reason not to vaccinate or boost - Omicron is upon us. There is no reason to vaccinate those who have already been infected and so have a much broader, stronger, longer lasting immunity - including mucosal immunity - than is possible with any number of vaccine injections.
Thank you for posting this and giving us evidence. This has seemed obvious and it's oddly reassuring to finally see it. I do wonder about two things.
One, you say this: "Boosting should happen in populations where it further reduces severe disease and death— aka older & vulnerable people." Are you saying that boosting for this population makes sense even though it only buys a little time with presumably accelerated waning of immunity in these populations? Why continue to recommend it for these groups? How does it further reduce severe disease/death?
And two, do we really even know if these vaccines hold up against severe illness and death? Or is it that almost all of the deaths occur is the very age group that all of us eventually die > 75 years old?
I was disappointed in your assessment of VAERS regarding deaths. We don't usually have to prove a connection when assessing adverse reactions with a new vaccine especially one rushed and based on new mRNA technology never before used. They removed the rotavirus vaccine RotaShield after a few dozen cases of intussusception but no deaths. There have been 21,000 deaths associated Covid vaccines reported so far. That's more than all other vaccines combined in 30 years. And when you combine that with the obvious poor efficacy of the vaccine it makes no sense to keep giving it until we sort this out. By the way why haven't we sorted it out? I haven't seen a single double blinded prospective study to assess deaths caused by the vaccine. This would be easy to do considering the available people who do and don't want to take the vaccine. The idea of throwing up our hands and saying we don't really know if these deaths are caused by the vaccine is bizarre. Statistical analysis would be simple to do. We could analyze these deaths that have occurred and find out what the cause of death was based on autopsy. I haven't heard any autopsies on any of them. I've had read stories of family members pushing for autopsies that have been refused. Its as if the goal is to minimize what VAERS is showing and not get to the bottom of whether the deaths were related to the vaccine. Please stop mentioning car accidents. It's a slap in the face of people who've lost loved ones possibly secondary to a vaccine being forced on them. It's not a thing. It's a talking point. VAERS is hard enough to navigate and filled on every page with threats of breaking federal law if you misreport. No one is dumb enough to put themselves through that after a car accident. Not the doctors who are primarily the ones who fill these out. But not the patients either who have had the wherewithal to complete one of those forms.
"Second, this argument would mean the state could tell people what to eat and how much to exercise, and how much to drink. Food, drink and obesity are drivers of hospitalizations. Instead, we have not accepted these infringements in the past. The justification for vaccine mandates is that it helps curb population spread. The latest vaccine effectiveness figures show that effect is now nearly gone, and transient at best. Ergo, the mandates are unjustified."
You are conflating the arguments for booster mandates (which are weak) and vaccine mandates (which are much stronger). The justification for the latter is not about spread or rates of mild symptomatic illness. It is that they preserve health system capacity and decrease collective social costs by significantly reducing rates of hospitalization and serious illness. One can disagree about the balance of trade-offs from those mandates (infringements on individual autonomy, backlash effects, etc.) but they deserve a more serious treatment than you give them here.
Vinay: It is implicit in the title of your article ["Vaccine effectiveness (against infection not severe disease) goes down the drain"] that in the COVID context you equate the term "Infection" with *Having a Positive PCR Test Result* PERIOD. I do not disagree with that definition and I also have looked at the Kaiser paper, which you cited. In that elaborate test-negative case control study, it seems to me that their definition of "being a case" was *only* having a positive PCR test result, no matter the indication or circumstances for PCR test administration (obviously with some particular exclusion criteria applied, as was explicated by the authors).
Thank you for your summary and the courage to explain the conclusions. This won't end until people start saying No with conviction. Being informed with this data is essential to that goal.
It would seem about the right time to see a pivot from up top. I don't know how others feel but without any sort of pivot and reassessment I don't know how much trust our institutions have left. People speak of Joe Rogan on Twitter like his podcast is fringe while in reality it is the modern day version of the Oprah show. By the numbers his audience is the mainstream.
You ok? You know this is where you're going to cross the line, right? Get ready for major mud slinging and push back. They're going to bring the kitchen sink, and everything you've throw down it, at you.
Thank you as always for putting things in perspective! It’s been a LONG week here in LA County, CA! My teens’ high school is now treating my teens as “unvaccinated” because they have not been boosted. Both teens have gotten two doses of Pfizer and we are hesitant to boost our son because of the risk of myocarditis. However, because he isn’t boosted, he got placed on “modified quarantine” this past week - where he can go to all of his academic classes, masked, eat lunch with friends outside, unmasked, but was NOT allowed to go to varsity soccer practices, masked!? How does that make any logical sense? It is honestly infuriating!! He had to get two negative tests (one on the 5th and one yesterday, on the 8th) in order to be allowed to go to soccer Monday, and now needs to test every Monday in order to continue playing soccer, just like his unvaccinated teammates… it’s like they ignore the fact that he has two doses of mRNA vaccine in him and is protected from severe disease, and if they all wear masks (surgical or N95/KN95 now required), then shouldn’t they all be allowed to both go to their classes, AND return to their sports?! Especially since soccer is outside in the fresh air and all are masked?! I’m so perplexed by the lack of common sense that I’m beside myself…
I follow breakthrough cases, excavating the data from the most obscure location on a DPH website. The dropping VE has been coming on since November. Even the most heavily vaccinated and boosted cities or states have breakthrough infections exceeding 50%.
Dear Vinay. The UC system is mandating the booster. My son can only go back to the Berkeley campus as a freshman if he complies. I am worried for his safety given the risk of myocarditis. Plus, now, they will be mostly virtual for the first 2 weeks. Could you send your thoughts on lack of efficiency and higher risk to the office of the President of the UC system, as well as to the UC Berkeley medical office, Dr Anna Harte and Guy Colette? My husband tired and got a curt response. So our voice won't matter. Th and ou for all that you do!
Dear Dr Prasad,
Please read the research articles cited at "What every MD, immunologist, virologist and epidemiologist should know about vitamin D and the immune system" https://vitamindstopscovid.info/05-mds/ .
The immune system needs at least 50 ng/mL circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D for strong innate and adaptive responses, and to minimise the risk of hyper-inflammatory immune dysregulation. Without proper vitamin D3 supplementation - such as (70 kg 154 lb bodyweight) 0.125mg 5000 IU / day - most people's 25(OH)D levels are 5 to 25 ng/mL.
For rapid boosting of 25(OH) in 4 hours or ~~4 days, please see: and https://nutritionmatters.substack.com/p/calcifediol-25-hydroxyvitamin-d-or .
These mRNA and adenovirus vector COVID-19 "vaccines" have always been the 3rd best way of tackling the pandemic, after proper vitamin D3 supplementation and multiple early treatments, including melatonin, vitamin C, magnesium and ivermectin: https://c19early.com . For most people, the most urgently needed early treatment is boosting 25(OH)D ASAP.
The current vaccines make sense for those with obesity and other serious comorbidities even if their 25(OH)D levels are 50 ng/mL or more and if they have access to multiple early treatments. They have never been the best option for most people, and are now close to useless for reducing Omicron transmission. They provide significant benefits by way of protection from severe disease, but this is narrow and somewhat escaped by Omicron.
There's no reason not to vaccinate or boost - Omicron is upon us. There is no reason to vaccinate those who have already been infected and so have a much broader, stronger, longer lasting immunity - including mucosal immunity - than is possible with any number of vaccine injections.
Thank you for posting this and giving us evidence. This has seemed obvious and it's oddly reassuring to finally see it. I do wonder about two things.
One, you say this: "Boosting should happen in populations where it further reduces severe disease and death— aka older & vulnerable people." Are you saying that boosting for this population makes sense even though it only buys a little time with presumably accelerated waning of immunity in these populations? Why continue to recommend it for these groups? How does it further reduce severe disease/death?
And two, do we really even know if these vaccines hold up against severe illness and death? Or is it that almost all of the deaths occur is the very age group that all of us eventually die > 75 years old?
Thank You as always Dr. Prasad.
I was disappointed in your assessment of VAERS regarding deaths. We don't usually have to prove a connection when assessing adverse reactions with a new vaccine especially one rushed and based on new mRNA technology never before used. They removed the rotavirus vaccine RotaShield after a few dozen cases of intussusception but no deaths. There have been 21,000 deaths associated Covid vaccines reported so far. That's more than all other vaccines combined in 30 years. And when you combine that with the obvious poor efficacy of the vaccine it makes no sense to keep giving it until we sort this out. By the way why haven't we sorted it out? I haven't seen a single double blinded prospective study to assess deaths caused by the vaccine. This would be easy to do considering the available people who do and don't want to take the vaccine. The idea of throwing up our hands and saying we don't really know if these deaths are caused by the vaccine is bizarre. Statistical analysis would be simple to do. We could analyze these deaths that have occurred and find out what the cause of death was based on autopsy. I haven't heard any autopsies on any of them. I've had read stories of family members pushing for autopsies that have been refused. Its as if the goal is to minimize what VAERS is showing and not get to the bottom of whether the deaths were related to the vaccine. Please stop mentioning car accidents. It's a slap in the face of people who've lost loved ones possibly secondary to a vaccine being forced on them. It's not a thing. It's a talking point. VAERS is hard enough to navigate and filled on every page with threats of breaking federal law if you misreport. No one is dumb enough to put themselves through that after a car accident. Not the doctors who are primarily the ones who fill these out. But not the patients either who have had the wherewithal to complete one of those forms.
"Second, this argument would mean the state could tell people what to eat and how much to exercise, and how much to drink. Food, drink and obesity are drivers of hospitalizations. Instead, we have not accepted these infringements in the past. The justification for vaccine mandates is that it helps curb population spread. The latest vaccine effectiveness figures show that effect is now nearly gone, and transient at best. Ergo, the mandates are unjustified."
You are conflating the arguments for booster mandates (which are weak) and vaccine mandates (which are much stronger). The justification for the latter is not about spread or rates of mild symptomatic illness. It is that they preserve health system capacity and decrease collective social costs by significantly reducing rates of hospitalization and serious illness. One can disagree about the balance of trade-offs from those mandates (infringements on individual autonomy, backlash effects, etc.) but they deserve a more serious treatment than you give them here.
excellent as always. thank you.
Vinay: It is implicit in the title of your article ["Vaccine effectiveness (against infection not severe disease) goes down the drain"] that in the COVID context you equate the term "Infection" with *Having a Positive PCR Test Result* PERIOD. I do not disagree with that definition and I also have looked at the Kaiser paper, which you cited. In that elaborate test-negative case control study, it seems to me that their definition of "being a case" was *only* having a positive PCR test result, no matter the indication or circumstances for PCR test administration (obviously with some particular exclusion criteria applied, as was explicated by the authors).
This round table is happening now hosted by Sen. Ron Johnson from WI. This would be great for you to watch and weigh in on. https://www.redvoicemedia.com/video/2022/01/live-covid-19-a-second-opinion-ron-johnson-moderated-panel-discussion-with-experts/
Thank you for your summary and the courage to explain the conclusions. This won't end until people start saying No with conviction. Being informed with this data is essential to that goal.