Joe Fraiman, an emergency physician based in Louisiana, and lead author of a pivotal study that re-analysed the original mRNA vaccine trials, has recently called for the vaccines to be suspended.
Fraiman made the announcement in an online video that spread like wildfire across social media. I spoke with him recently to find out what troubled him the most about the vaccines.
“Since omicron, the benefits of the vaccine are greatly reduced. I have only admitted one person with covid-19 to the hospital in a year and my colleagues have had similar experiences,” said Fraiman, “So, if we’re giving the vaccine to people to prevent hospitalisations and death, then the impact of the vaccines is fairly insignificant.”
Fraiman joins a growing number of physicians and researchers questioning whether the benefits of the vaccines outweigh the harms.
Last year, Fraiman and his colleagues published their analysis in the journal Vaccine, and found the rate of serious adverse events with the mRNA vaccines was 1 in 800 – far greater than the rate of adverse events seen with traditional vaccines of 1 to 2 per million.
“I think the covid vaccines should be withdrawn,” said Fraiman. “I do not believe it’s wise to continue to administer them to people, until we have evidence that there is net benefit. And if it's only a net benefit in a certain group, then we should only give it to people in that group,” he added.