SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Today's Why Guy question from Leslie Starrett via Facebook who asks, "why are COVID-19 ads able to unequivocally claim that vaccines are safe and effective for anyone 12 years and older without any disclosure of side effects and/or a notification that they are not fully approved by the FDA, like some supplements that claim to have beneficial effects?"
Leslie, that question is top of mind for many people we hear from, and yes, there are plenty of vitamins and dietary supplements for sale that do not have the pre-approval of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
As for why many of us are getting vaccines that are not fully approved by the FDA, ABC10 medical expert Dr. Payal Kohli says emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 vaccinations mean they're marketed in a different way.
"Emergency use authorization means the benefits outweigh the risks where there are not a lot of other alternatives," Kohli said. "The vaccines have undergone emergency use authorization which puts it in another category on how we think about it, how they're marketed and explained."
Kohli believes more people should be talking about the side effects so people can understand the risks and benefits better.
With COVID-19 cases surging again, primarily impacting the unvaccinated, the CDC and other state and local agencies continue to urge the unvaccinated to vaccinate. If you continue to have questions or doubts, health experts suggest you talk to someone in the medical field you trust and are comfortable with, such as your own primary care physician.
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