Tuesday, May 4, 2021 at 11:17:00 A.M. EDT
Repost: Grand Rapids Area Woman Dies after Receiving J&J Vaccine April 8th
GRA: It’s important to know about any and all deaths related to the vaccine—and the symptoms that go with a “bad reaction.”
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The family of an Ionia-area wife and mother says she died due to complications after receiving the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.
Anne VanGeest, 35, died April 19 at Mercy Health Saint Mary’s in Grand Rapids.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the news of Anne’s passing as the result of complications after receiving the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine,” her family said in a Thursday morning statement released through a Grand Rapids public relations firm.
The statement from a representative of VanGeest’s family stopped short of saying she died from the J&J vaccine, instead saying she died “as the result of complications after (emphasis added) receiving the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed to VanGeest’s family that her death was reported through the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), a vaccine safety system managed by the CDC and FDA.
“We did receive a VAERS report concerning (Anne’s) case. It was filed by her healthcare provider,” wrote a member of the CDC Immunization Safety Office in an email exchange with one of VanGeest’s relatives.
“VAERS accepts reports of possible side effects (also called ‘adverse events’) following vaccination. The system is not designed to determine whether a reported adverse event was caused by the vaccine, but serves as an early warning system and helps CDC and FDA identify areas for further study. When VAERS receives reports of serious illness or death after vaccination, VAERS staff contact the hospital where the patient was treated to obtain the associated medical records to better understand the adverse event. They do not routinely contact the family.”
Neither the FDA nor the CDC would confirm to News 8 that it’s investigating Van Geest’s death.
When Target 8 reached out to Johnson & Johnson last week, it provided a statement in response but did not directly address VanGeest’s case:
“There is no greater priority than the safety and well-being of the people we serve, and we carefully review reports of adverse events in individuals receiving our medicines or vaccines. Any report about an individual receiving our COVID-19 vaccine and our assessment of that report is shared with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other appropriate health authorities. This is part of the established process to inform health authorities’ comprehensive surveillance programs that monitor the overall safety of medicines, as well the vaccines authorized for use against this pandemic.”
JOHNSON & JOHNSON
VanGeest’s family said she received the vaccine April 8. She later developed a persistent headache, which is one of the symptoms reported in women under 50 who suffered a rare complication of the J&J vaccine.
--GRA
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