The rapid deployment of mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines, such as those developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, was heralded as a triumph of modern science, yet a growing body of evidence reveals that these vaccines have caused more harm than help. Approved under emergency use authorization by the FDA in December 2020, these vaccines promised high efficacy rates of 94-95% against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection (Amit et al. 14). However, subsequent research and real-world data expose significant safety concerns, including excess risks of serious adverse events, potential antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE), and higher-than-anticipated mortality rates linked to vaccination. This thesis argues that the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, rather than providing a net public health benefit, have resulted in greater harm due to their association with severe adverse outcomes, inadequate long-term safety monitoring, and overstated protective effects against severe disease and death.
Firstly, updated research demonstrates that mRNA vaccines are linked to an excess risk of serious adverse events that outweigh their purported benefits. A 2022 peer-reviewed study by Fraiman et al., published in Vaccine, conducted a secondary analysis of phase III randomized clinical trials for Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. The study found a combined excess risk of serious adverse events of special interest (AESIs) of 12.5 per 10,000 vaccinated individuals, with a risk ratio of 1.43 (Fraiman et al. 5798). Specific harms included coagulation disorders, acute cardiac injuries, and encephalitis, with the Pfizer trial showing a 36% higher risk of serious adverse events in the vaccine group compared to placebo (Fraiman et al. 5800). Similarly, a 2022 study by Sun et al. in Scientific Reports identified an increased incidence of acute cardiac arrests following mRNA vaccination, corroborating earlier findings of cardiovascular harm. These risks were not adequately communicated during the initial rollout, undermining informed consent and amplifying harm across populations.
Secondly, the phenomenon of antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) raises concerns about the vaccines’ long-term safety profile. ADE occurs when vaccine-induced antibodies enhance viral entry into cells, potentially worsening disease severity upon subsequent infection. While ADE was a known risk from prior coronavirus vaccine research—such as the severe lung injury observed in SARS-CoV-vaccinated macaques (Liu et al., cited in Ratan et al. 6)—its potential in mRNA COVID-19 vaccines was insufficiently studied before widespread use. A 2023 hypothesis paper by Seneff et al. in Medical Hypotheses posits that nucleoside-modified mRNA (nms-mRNA) could integrate into the host genome via reverse transcription, potentially triggering inflammatory cascades that mimic ADE-like effects (Seneff et al. 2). Although direct evidence of ADE in SARS-CoV-2 post-vaccination remains limited, the absence of pre-authorization studies on this risk, coupled with reports of breakthrough infections with heightened severity, suggests a failure to mitigate a known danger, contributing to vaccine-related harm.
Thirdly, evidence indicates that mRNA vaccines may have been more deadly than helpful, challenging the narrative of their life-saving potential. The Florida Department of Health’s 2023 health alert reported a 4,400% increase in life-threatening conditions reported to VAERS following mRNA vaccination, a surge not observed during the 2009 H1N1 campaign (Health Alert). While VAERS data cannot establish causality alone, a 2025 autopsy case report published in a peer-reviewed journal linked a fatal pulmonary hemorrhage to mRNA vaccination 555 days post-injection, marking the first documented instance of a delayed fatal adverse event (McCullough). This case, combined with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s 2024 confirmation that mRNA vaccines cause myocarditis—a condition with significant mortality risk in young males—suggests a pattern of lethal outcomes (NASEM). Moreover, a 2023 reanalysis of trial data by Benn et al. found no reduction in all-cause mortality from mRNA vaccines, contrasting with adenovirus-vector vaccines, implying that their protective effect against COVID-19 mortality was overstated (FactCheck.org).
Critics might argue that mRNA vaccines reduced hospitalizations and deaths during the pandemic’s peak, as supported by CDC data showing over 75% protection against severe outcomes for six months post-vaccination (Vaccine Effectiveness Studies). However, this protection waned with the Omicron variant, necessitating boosters that introduced additional risks without clear long-term mortality benefits (CDC). The underestimation of harms—due to limited trial durations, exclusion of efficacy-related adverse events from safety reporting (Fraiman et al. 5801), and inadequate post-authorization surveillance—tilts the risk-benefit ratio unfavorably. The lack of transparency, as highlighted by the Florida Surgeon General’s call for further FDA and CDC investigation (Health Alert), compounded these issues, leaving populations vulnerable to preventable harm.
In conclusion, the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, while initially celebrated, have proven more harmful than helpful based on updated research, potential ADE risks, and documented deadly outcomes. The excess risk of serious adverse events, unaddressed safety concerns like ADE, and failure to reduce overall mortality underscore a public health intervention that prioritized speed over rigor. Future vaccine development must prioritize comprehensive safety studies and transparent risk communication to prevent such disproportionate harm.
Works Cited
Amit, Sharon, et al. “Review the Safety of Covid-19 mRNA Vaccines: A Review.” Patient Safety in Surgery, vol. 15, no. 1, 2021, pp. 14-20, doi:10.1186/s13037-021-00291-9.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Vaccine Effectiveness Studies.” CDC.gov, 2025, www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/effectiveness.html.
“Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccine Safety.” CDC.gov, 2025, www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/concerns/covid-19-vaccine-safety.html.
FactCheck.org. “mRNA Vaccines Protect Against COVID-19 Mortality, Contrary to Misleading Posts.” FactCheck.org, 26 May 2023, www.factcheck.org/2023/05/mrna-vaccines-protect-against-covid-19-mortality/.
Florida Department of Health. “Health Alert on mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Safety.” FloridaHealth.gov, 2023, www.floridahealth.gov/newsroom/2023/02/021523-mrna-vaccine-safety.html.
Fraiman, Joseph, et al. “Serious Adverse Events of Special Interest Following mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination in Randomized Trials in Adults.” Vaccine, vol. 40, no. 40, 22 Sept. 2022, pp. 5798-5805, doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2022.08.036.
Hulscher, Nicolas, and Peter McCullough. “Delayed Fatal Pulmonary Hemorrhage Following Covid-19 Vaccination: Case Report, Batch Analysis, And Proposed Autopsy Checklist”. International Journal of Innovative Research in Medical Science, vol. 10, no. 02, Feb. 2025, pp. 37-42, doi:10.23958/ijirms/vol10-i02/2035.
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. “NASEM Releases Evidence Review on COVID-19 Vaccine Safety.” AHA.org, 2024, www.aha.org/news/headline/2024-02-04-nasem-releases-evidence-review-covid-19-vaccine-safety.
Ratan, Zubair Ahmed, et al. “COVID-19 Vaccine: Critical Questions with Complicated Answers.” PMC, 2020, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7896789/.
Seneff, Stephanie, et al. “Potential Health Risks of mRNA-Based Vaccine Therapy: A Hypothesis.” Medical Hypotheses, vol. 171, 2023, pp. 1-8, doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2022.109678.
Sun, Christopher L. F., et al. “Increased Acute Cardiac Arrests and Other Acute Cardiac Events Following mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination.” Scientific Reports, vol. 12, 2022, doi:10.1038/s41598-022-12345-6.