Misleading: Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla admits the Pfizer vaccine offers zero protection against COVID-19.

By: Umme Kulsum
January 17 2022

Share Article:

Bourla said two doses of the Pfizer vaccine offer "very limited protection" against Omicron. He said three doses offer reasonable protection.The Daily Expose, a conspiracy-pseudoscience news website, published an article on January 11, 2022, claiming that "Pfizer CEO admits the current vaccine offers zero protection against COVID-19." However, the Daily Expose took comments made by Albert Bourla out of context. During an interview at a J. P. Morgan's healthcare conference on January 10, 2022, when asked about the boosters and the Omicron variant surge, Albert Bourla said, "We know that the two doses of a vaccine offer very limited protection if any. The three doses with a booster, they offer reasonable protection against hospitalization and deaths. Against deaths, I think very good, and less protection against infection." In the clip, Bourla mainly talked about the Omicron variant of COVID-19 and their new version of the vaccine, "version 1.1," which will cover the Omicron variant. He did not generally speak about the vaccine's protection against the other variants of COVID-19. He also didn't say that the Pfizer vaccine offers "zero protection." Bourla simply emphasized the importance of a third or booster shot to protect people against Omicron. Also, on the same day, Bourla told CNBC that Pfizer would have a vaccine that explicitly targets the Omicron variant that will be ready in March 2022. In a press release on December 08, 2021, Pfizer stated that the initial laboratory studies demonstrated three doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine neutralize the Omicron variant. In comparison, the two doses show "significantly reduced neutralization titers." In the Expose article, remarks made by Pfizer CEO have been taken out of context to give a different meaning. Bourla primarily spoke about the Omicron and the Pfizer vaccine's effectiveness against it. Bourla did not say Pfizer's double dose gives no protection against COVID-19. According to WHO, the Omicron variant has a "humoral immune escape potential and higher transmissibility" and has a "significant growth advantage over the Delta variant." The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19, including symptoms, prevention, and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organization or your national healthcare authority.