Judicial Watch: New CDC Records Detail Agency Head Walensky Wanted Details of Death of Teenager Reported to Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it obtained 314 pages of records from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that show Director Rochelle Walensky’s communications, which include her request for details about the death of a teenager who died days after receiving a coronavirus vaccination.

Judicial Watch obtained the records in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request sent on September 9, 2021, for:

All emails sent to and from CDC Director Rochelle Walensky referencing the terms ‘Antibody Dependent Enhancement’, ‘ADE’ (when used to represent Antibody Dependent Enhancement), ‘pathological priming’, ‘pre-priming’, ‘paradoxical immune enhancement’, and/or ‘disease enhancement’.

On June 28, 2021, Walensky forwarded an article titled “CDC reportedly probing Michigan teen’s death after COID-19 vaccination” to her subordinates, asking, “Any details on this?” Dr. Henry Walke, director of CDC’s Division of Preparedness and Emerging Infections, forwarded Walensky’s request to another official, David Fitter, who replied, “The case had been reported to VAERS [CDC’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System]. CDC has spoken with ME [Medical Examiner], but we are following protocol for f/u [follow-up] re the case. Additionally, CDC remains in contact with MI to assist in the investigation.”

CDC official Jennifer Layden followed up the same day, writing:

For awareness, further details. This case was reported through VAERS, and the investigation is proceeding.

From safety team: CDC is not actively involved in this investigation (i.e., IDPB examining specimens). We have made contact with the state health department and the pathologist who did the autopsy and are in touch to maintain situational awareness. The initial report is in VAERS and we will receive the final autopsy report when it is complete. I can’t speak to how the reporter got his/her information and came to his/her conclusions, but this is being investigated at the state level, as are all deaths. The autopsy was completed when we contacted the state health department and no request for CDC assistance has been made. 

–The patient was a male aged 13 years with no notable medical history.

– He was found unresponsive 2 days after vaccination. Aside from a fever, he was in his usual state of health prior to his demise. 

– An autopsy has been performed; the results and final report are pending. 

– CDC and the state health department are in communication about this case, which remains under investigation. 

– The pathologist indicated that there appeared to be bilateral ventricular enlargement and histology consistent with myocarditis, but those were preliminary findings.

Walke forwarded this email to Walensky writing, “More info.” Walensky replied, “Grateful… R”

On August 20, 2021, Christie Bloomquist, an AstraZeneca vice president for corporate affairs, North America, emailed Walensky a press release stating that “The reduced Fc receptor binding aims to minimize the risk of antibody-dependent enhancement of disease – a phenomenon in which virus-specific antibodies promote, rather than inhibit, infection and/or disease.”

On July 26, 2021, Walensky received via email a study from a person whose name is redacted titled “Six Month Safety and Efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine.” According to the researchers, the study included 44,165 randomized participants. “Of these participants, 44,060 were vaccinated with 2:1 dose (BNT162b2, n=22,030; placebo, n=22,030), and 98% received dose 2 (Fig.l). During the blinded period, 51% of participants in each group had 4 to <6 months of follow-up post dose 2; 8% of BNT162b2 recipients and 6% of placebo recipients had 2:6 months follow-up post-dose 2.”

The researchers found that:

Adverse event analyses during the blinded period are provided for 43,847 ≥16-year-olds (Table S3). Reactogenicity events among participants not in the reactogenicity subset are reported as adverse events, resulting in imbalances in adverse events (30% vs 14%), related adverse events (24% vs 6%), and severe adverse events (1.2% vs 0.7%) between BNT162b2 and placebo groups. Decreased appetite, lethargy, asthenia, malaise, night sweats, and hyperhidrosis were new adverse events attributable to BNT162b2 not previously identified in earlier reports.

The study was paid for and conducted by Pfizer and BioNTech.

“The American people have a right to know as much as possible about the safety of the COVID vaccines,” stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The CDC needs to be more transparent about its investigations of COVID vaccine adverse events, including deaths, reported on VAERS.”

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