Sen. Rand Paul Grills Moderna CEO On The Risk of Myocarditis In Young Males: Video

During a hearing on Wednesday, Republican Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky grilled Modern CEO Stéphane Bancel on the higher incidence of myocarditis among adolescent males 16 to 24 after taking your vaccine.

Bancel refused to concede to studies showing negative vaccine side effects in adolescent boys.

Paul also asked if there was a conflict of interest for the government employees who are making money now off of the vaccine to also be dictating the policy about how many times we have to take the vaccine.

Here's the video:

Here's the full transcript:

RAND PAUL: “Mr. Bancel, Maderna recently paid NIH $400 million. Do you believe it creates a conflict of interest for the government employees who are making money now off of the vaccine to also be dictating the policy about how many times we have to take the vaccine?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “Good morning, Senator. Indeed, we recently made, before Christmas last year a $400 million payment to the NIH for an old pattern that they had developed not related to Covid, but usefully the development of a Covid vaccine to — to prevent overwork. It’s for the U.S. government to assess how that money should be used.”

RAND PAUL: “Do you think it creates a conflict of interest for the same people deciding the policy of how often we have to take the vaccine to also be making money, the more times we take the vaccine, yes or no?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “This is for the government to decide, sir.”

RAND PAUL: “You have no opinion on whether or not that creates a conflict of interest. Is there a higher interest or a higher incidence of myocarditis among adolescent males 16 to 24 after taking your vaccine?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “So, thank you for the question, senator. Fist, let me say we care deeply about safety and we’re working closely with the CDC and the FDA to get —”
Paul: “Pretty much a yes or no. Is there a higher incidence of myocarditis among boys 16 to 24, after they take your vaccine?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “Well, data have shown actually — I’ve seen, sorry, from the CDC actually shown that there is less myocarditis for people who get the vaccine versus who get Covid infection.”

RAND PAUL: “You’re — you’re saying that for ages 16 to 24. Among males who take the Covid vaccine, their risk of myocarditis is less than people who get the disease?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “That is my understanding, sir.”

RAND PAUL: “That is not true. And I’d like to enter into the record six peer-reviewed papers from the ‘Journal of Vaccine,’ the ‘Annals of Medicine’ that say the complete opposite of what you say. I also spoke with your president just last week, and he readily acknowledged in private that yes, there is an increased risk of myocarditis. The fact that you can’t say in public is quite disturbing. Do you think it’s scientifically sound to mandate three vaccines for adolescent boys?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “This is for Republican leaders to decide, senator.”

RAND PAUL: “You’ve been advocating for it. You’ve been interviewed, and you’ve been advocating for boosters. Do you know when the myocarditis is most common among these adolescent boys after the second dose? When I spoke with your president, he readily acknowledged in private, Yeah, maybe there ought to be a discussion whether we ought to have one vaccine versus two versus three. If 90 percent of the myocarditis comes after the second dose. Why Don’t We have a rational discussion about one? Marty Makary, a physician from Johns Hopkins has said exactly the same thing. It’s been discussed. And yet we have this ridiculous notion from the CDC. So the CDC says — and I’ll ask you this question — let’s start it as a question. Your 16 year olds had Covid, your 16 year old gets better and now has recovered from Covid. You vaccinate them and they get myocarditis. Are you going to give them two more vaccines? Your child give him two more vaccines?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “I’m not the clinician. I would have to discuss with —”

RAND PAUL: “You have children.”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “I do.”

RAND PAUL: “Have you vaccinated your children?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “I have.”

RAND PAUL: “How many times?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “Three or four times”

RAND PAUL: “Three or four times?”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “We followed the —”

RAND PAUL: “So, the CDC recommends this — and you know, you’re obviously someone who’s self-interested in the outcome here — but the CDC says that if your 15, 16 year old gets Covid, recovers, takes a vaccine and gets myocarditis is hospitalized with elevated heart enzymes, and is very sick, the CDC says soon as he gets better, vaccinate him again. Do you know how many American parents think that that’s a rational, reasonable thing to do? Do you know how many countries don’t do this for children? Sweden doesn’t offer the vaccine for kids under 12 unless they’re at risk for severe disease. And I agree with that. I’m not saying never on any of this, I think it’s very reasonable position to say kids at risk or who have some diseases that there may be a reason for vaccinating some children. Finland doesn’t recommend it for under 12 months, Norway also, England as well, France, Poland, Germany, Switzerland, they all vaccinate 12 and up. So we got half the world who have looked at these studies, there’s a study in Israel of thousands of patients and yet you sit here and act as if you’ve never heard of myocarditis, and you don’t think it’s an increased risk for young adolescent males when all of the studies who isolate out people by age have found that yes, there’s an increased risk after taking your vaccine. Pfizer too, but worse with Moderna.”

STÉPHANE BANCEL: “There’s an increased risk and that’s always comparing it to somebody who gets Covid.”

RAND PAUL: “Well, that’s also not true either. But there is an increased risk of getting it. But even when they compare it to the disease, there are many papers out there whose — that do show that there’s more of a risk of myocarditis after vaccination. So you have to weigh the risk and balances. And you are right, you’re going to make less money because you’re going to try — they’re already trying — the CDC’s got on their schedule — they’re going to try to force all the kids in America to do this in school, but guess what? Parents aren’t going to do it. They’ve seen that Covid is not deadly in children and you’re right, it’s become less deadly over time. Your market’s going down. So you aren’t going to make as much money. I’m all for you making money in an honest way, but I don’t like the idea that the people making the decisions in government are also receiving money and are now conflicted in their interest.”

BERNIE SANDERS: “Thank you, Senator Paul.”