CDC Data Show 1.7 Million Adverse Events, 38,190 Deaths Reported Following COVID-19 Vaccines

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released new data showing a total of 1,656,140 reports of adverse events following COVID-19 vaccines were submitted between Dec. 14, 2020, and Nov. 29, 2024, to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). This includes 38,190 reports of deaths and 313,496 serious injuries.

VAERS is a voluntary reporting system co-managed by the FDA and CDC designed to detect vaccine safety signals. Each month, VAERS publishes vaccine injury reports received as of a specified date. Historically, VAERS has been shown to report only 1% of actual vaccine adverse events and only makes initial reports publicly available.

Of the 38,190 reported deaths, 23,742 cases are attributed to Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine and 10,939 cases to Moderna. Excluding “foreign reports” to VAERS, 1,021,132 adverse events, including 19,148 deaths and 118,916 serious injuries, were reported in the U.S. between Dec. 14, 2020, and Nov. 29, 2024.

Foreign reports are reports foreign subsidiaries send to U.S. vaccine manufacturers. Under U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations, if a manufacturer is notified of a foreign case report that describes an event that is both serious and does not appear on the product’s labeling, the manufacturer is required to submit the report to VAERS.

Of the 19,148 U.S. deaths reported as of Nov. 29, 6% occurred within 24 hours of vaccination, and 13% occurred within 48 hours of vaccination.

In the U.S., 672 million COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered as of Aug. 10, 2024, including 402 million doses of Pfizer and 252 million doses of Moderna.

VAERS Data for 6-month-olds to 5-year-olds

The CDC uses a narrowed case definition of “myocarditis,” which excludes cases of cardiac arrest, ischemic strokes, and deaths due to heart problems that occur before one has the chance to go to the emergency department.

VAERS Data for 5- to 11-year-olds

VAERS data for 12- to 17-year-olds

According to the CDC, “VAERS data available to the public include only the initial report data to VAERS. Updated data, which contains data from medical records and corrections reported during follow-up, are used by the government for analysis. However, for numerous reasons, including data consistency, these amended data are not available to the public.”

  • 288 reports of anaphylaxis among 12- to 17-year-olds where the reaction was life-threatening, required treatment, or resulted in death.
  • 1,416 reports of myocarditis and pericarditis, with 1,237 cases attributed to Pfizer’s vaccine.
  • 325 reports of blood clotting disorders, with 294 cases attributed to Pfizer.
  • 44 cases of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), with all cases attributed to Pfizer’s vaccine.

VAERS Data for All Age Groups Combined

The Vault Project asks anyone who has experienced an adverse reaction to any vaccine to file a report following these three steps.