CDC vaccine recommendations spark online conversations

Viral posts this week highlighted the backlash to pediatric COVID-19 vaccines and falsely claimed that Dutch courts indicted Bill Gates over COVID-19 vaccines.

This week, the CDC’s recommendations for additional immunizations for older and immunocompromised individuals garnered a mixed response online. In addition, in a widely circulated social media post, a physician discussed being the target of online harassment for talking about COVID-19 vaccines for children. Meanwhile, a viral—and completely baseless—conspiracy theory is circulating that Bill Gates will face criminal charges in the Netherlands for allegedly lying about COVID-19 vaccine safety.

Regionally, conversation centered around the repeatedly debunked and false correlation between sudden infant death syndrome and infant and toddler vaccinations. 

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What’s trending nationally in vaccine conversation:

On October 23, the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee, ACIP, met to discuss several vaccines. The committee voted to lower the recommended age for pneumococcal vaccination eligibility from 65 to 50 and to recommend an additional dose of the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine for older adults and immunocompromised individuals six months after the first dose. Some social media users applauded the committee for simplifying COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for older adults by recommending two doses six months apart. Vaccine opponents were critical of the recommendations and complained about the need for multiple vaccine doses. One post demanded that the CDC “please stop poisoning vulnerable elderly people.”

On October 22, a physician with a large online following described being harrassed across social media platforms after posting about vaccinating her child against COVID-19. The post was viewed over 2 million times and received nearly 80,000 engagements. Other health care providers shared similar experiences of trolling and harassment from vaccine opponents, including receiving hate mail and death threats. Several vaccine opponents replied to one post from a pediatrician specializing in infectious diseases about the importance of vaccines for children to argue against vaccines for children.

A conspiracy theory is circulating in multiple languages across social media platforms that Bill Gates will face trial in the Netherlands over his claims about COVID-19 vaccine safety. The apparent source of the claim is a far-right website known for publishing hoax stories and fringe conspiracy theories. A clip of former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. repeating the baseless claim at a conservative event has been widely circulated. Some posts also claim without evidence that Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla has also been indicted. The top five posts about the conspiracy theory have nearly 10 million views and 400,000 engagements. Similar conspiracy theories about Gates being indicted or arrested for his vaccine work have circulated online for years. 

Read the fact checks: 

• Healio: CDC recommends 2nd COVID shot for some, lowering age for pneumococcal vaccination 
• CDC: 6 Things to Know about COVID-19 Vaccination for Children
• Lead Stories: Fact Check: Bill Gates Was NOT Indicted In Netherlands — Judge Only Ruled On Jurisdiction In Civil Case

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What’s happening in the Northeast:

In an effort to educate children about the importance of vaccines, a group of Pennsylvania State University students hosted a Vaccine Field Day at a local elementary school. The event included games to educate attendees about vaccines and debunk vaccine myths and provided free vaccine vouchers for families. In response to social media posts about the event, some criticized it by saying families had been “lured” and “fooled” to vaccinate through games and free food. 

What’s happening in the South:

In June, Louisiana passed a resolution requiring the state health department to compare the last 10 years of SIDS cases with infant vaccination history. Recently an anti-public health activist group posted a social media clip promoting the passing of this resolution. Comments on the post supported the resolution, with users falsely claiming that SIDS occurs following vaccinations and calling for similar investigations in other states, including Texas and Florida.

What’s happening in the Midwest:

A recent social media post described the Iowa SIDS Foundation’s efforts to promote safe sleep practices amid a reported rise in SIDS cases. In response, commenters falsely linked the rise in cases to vaccines. Commenters erroneously correlated the two by misleadingly pointing to vaccine inserts, which list adverse events after vaccination but don’t list SIDS as a side effect. Other social media users also claimed that mothers are “gaslighted” when raising concerns about a possible vaccine connection.

What’s happening in the West:

A social media user in California claimed—without evidence—that her daughter recently found out that she had been vaccinated without consent in 2020 during an unrelated medical procedure. The mother claims her daughter learned she had unknowingly received vaccinations against COVID-19 and “others” she’s “never even heard of” after receiving copies of her past medical records. The post received over 14,000 responses, including similar claims of being offered vaccines during unrelated medical procedures. Some responses also encouraged the original poster to sue the provider and used the example as a reason for their lack of trust in the medical system. 

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Talking points for health care providers to use in response to trending narratives 

Each week the Infodemiology.com team will provide talking points and supporting messages in response to some of the trending narratives outlined above. Health care providers can use this messaging when discussing vaccines online, talking to patients, or engaging with communities. 

The CDC recommends an additional COVID-19 vaccine dose and a pneumococcal vaccine for the most vulnerable populations.

• The new recommendations will provide additional protections for older adults and immunocompromised people.
• The committee recommends that adults 65 and older and immunocompromised people receive a total of two doses of the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine six months apart.
• The group also lowered the recommended age to get a pneumococcal vaccine from 65 to 50. 
• Both recommendations are based on data showing that older adults and immunocompromised people are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 and pneumonia, making up the majority of hospitalizations and deaths from the diseases. 
• Vaccination significantly reduces the risk of COVID-19 and pneumonia.

Vaccines protect children against the worst of COVID-19, including severe illness, hospitalization, and long COVID. 

• Anti-vaccine figures often prey on parents’ concerns to convince them to deny their children life-saving vaccines. 
• Studies have consistently shown that COVID-19 vaccines are safe for children as young as 6 months and that vaccination during pregnancy protects infants in the first six months of life.
• COVID-19 vaccination lowers the risk of hospitalization, long COVID, and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, a serious potential complication of COVID-19. 

COVID-19 vaccines are safe. Over 5.5 billion people worldwide have safely received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose.

• Don’t be fooled by vaccine opponents who use conspiracy theories and unverified stories to falsely claim that vaccines are dangerous. 
• COVID-19 vaccines have been rigorously tested to make sure that they are safe. Real scientific evidence has repeatedly shown that COVID-19 vaccines are safe with no sign of widespread health concerns.

Interested in recommendations tailored to public health professionals? Click here.