Aaron Rodgers: Scientists react to the quarterback’s comments on Covid-19 vaccines and treatments
Rodgers isn’t just any soccer participant. Final 12 months he was named the Nationwide Soccer League’s Most worthy participant for the third time. He has hosted “Jeopardy,” and he has 4.5 million followers on Twitter.
“Any very public determine who to start with, is duplicitous, after which makes misstatements definitely is opposite to what we’re making an attempt to attain from a public well being perspective,” stated Dr. William Schaffner, professor of medication on the Vanderbilt College Faculty of Drugs. “And we might all of us who’re in public well being, I believe I can converse for my colleagues throughout the nation, suppose that that is very unlucky.”
Rodgers spoke on the radio present once more this week. He stated he took “full accountability” for “anyone who felt misled” by his feedback, however Rodgers did not attempt to appropriate something he stated earlier.
That, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupte stated, was “very irresponsible” as a result of “he offers plenty of voice both deliberately or to not the anti-vaccine motion. At a time once we’re nonetheless in the course of a pandemic, over 1,000 individuals are nonetheless dying of this illness” every day in america, Gupte stated on CNN this week.
Rodgers repeated a few of the commonest misinformation in regards to the vaccines and coverings which might be circulating across the nation, stated CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen, calling it a kind of “finest hits” of all of the bogus claims.
“What he is saying is a synthesis of all the main myths and misinformation, and it is as if we had been writing a information on combating misinformation,” Wen stated.
“These are issues which might be frequent myths,” Wen stated. “However when it is repeated by somebody with this stage of celeb and affect, it is rather harmful.”
Some even ponder whether or not the media are perpetuating Covid-19 and vaccine misinformation by persevering with to put in writing and discuss what Rodgers stated.
“A part of the problem, whether or not it is Aaron Rodgers or anyone else, is that the feedback on it and protection of it additional amplifies the message,” stated Sandra Crouse Quinn, chair of the Division of Household Science on the College of Maryland.
Scientists and public well being officers do not have the capability to succeed in tens of millions of individuals, as Rodgers can, Quinn stated.
“So it is like an uneven combat in some ways,” she stated, mentioning that Rodgers’ followers comply with him as a result of he is a superb soccer participant. “Would you go to a shoemaker to, I do not know, get your tooth pulled, since you actually like him and he is a terrific shoemaker?”
Survey reveals misinformation is widespread
“Finally, this comes right down to concern. Many individuals are scared. They’re scared due to what they’ve heard in regards to the vaccine,” Wen stated. “They do not know what to imagine. And if in case you have somebody who’s influential, like Aaron Rodgers, says issues which might be unfaithful, it would find yourself validating folks’s selections to stay unvaccinated.”
In Wisconsin, the place the Packers are situated, simply 55.1% of the inhabitants has been totally vaccinated.
“He is ready to actually inspire the state of Wisconsin and the nation at massive to get vaccinated. As an alternative of furthering this this divide, let’s open doorways,” Neitzel stated.
The truth that Rodgers misled folks in August by saying he was “immunized” was one of the crucial putting issues about his latest admission that he’s unvaccinated, medical doctors say.
“Immunized has a really particular which means,” Schaffner stated. “It is within the dictionary. It does not imply some nonspecific safety.”
“I am reminded of the late senator from New York, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who famously at one level stated everybody’s entitled to their very own opinion however to not their very own info,” Schaffner stated. “He stated a collection of issues that had been, purely from a scientific perspective, factually incorrect. I imply, this professor marks these solutions incorrect. Minus 10 on the examination.”
And a few of the “therapies” Rodgers talked about could possibly be dangerous, Schaffner stated.
Rodgers received one factor proper when instructed the radio present host that “hate is not going to carry us out of this pandemic.”
However there may be one factor that effectively might: vaccines, scientists say.
