CATEGORY / epidemiology

Bill Maher says a lot of stuff. Some of it I like, some of it I dislike, most of it I ignore. But occasionally he says something that has be rushing to my keyboard because it concerns something I know a little about. Recently, on his show Real Time, he said something to the effect that “COVID does not kill kids.” This was followed up with claiming that this zero mortality rate meant that schools were closed far too long during the worst of the pandemic. So here I am once more at my keyboard. (more…)

A weird obsession has taken hold of the anti-science crowd. It seems that to justify every rejection of public health measures, they turn to the Amish as an example of how “clean living” is all you need. (more…)

Can’t believe I’m writing on this topic. But the subject keeps popping up in my various feeds. And the rise to power of RFK Jr has stoked the confidence of science deniers everywhere. So I thought it would be helpful to lay out the safety evidence for mRNA vaccines in a way that most people would find easy to follow. And, yes, I know that the comments section is going to be an absolute joy, and that my “block” finger is going to get a fantastic workout. But such is my life.

First, here’s a reminder of why I feel confident in being the purveyor of this information. I have a PhD in Epidemiology & Biostatistics, have been a professor of health sciences at a leading Canadian university for 17 years now, was a Board member of our national Epidemiology body for many years, have published over 100 peer reviewed science articles, several on vaccine science, have been an expert witness on a dozen court cases around the efficacy and safety of COVID vaccines, and have advised governments, institutions, and corporations on this matter. So, I have some fluency with the data. (more…)