Is the Pfizer COVID vaccine safe?

submitted by Pink from self.debatealtright

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[–]Wrangel 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (5 children)

That isn't profit, a large portion of that is cost, developing a drug quickly runs into the billions and then billions of doses have to be produced. If this is some type of scam it isn't a very good one and we still get a highly effective and safe vaccine from it. From a cost/benefit standpoint the covid-vaccine is extremely efficient. Trillions for a pandemic or a few billion for a vaccine.

[–]Nombre27 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

If this is some type of scam it isn't a very good one and we still get a highly effective and safe vaccine from it.

I'm skeptical of that.

I recall the 95% efficacy (I think it was) that was claimed.

When you look at the data for that claim it was about 40000 people total, 20000 in each arm, vaccinated or placebo.

Something like 160 people tested positive in the control arm, within 2 weeks or 1 month iirc. While 8 tested positive in the vaccine arm.

160/(160+8)*100 = ~95%

Or in other words, 19992 (99.96%) vs. 19840 (99.2%) people didn't get sick at all. I can accept that that is the proper way to report the data but looking at that data doesn't leave me convinced, especially since they didn't go and test all the people in both groups, they're relying on a sample of 0.04%-0.8% as if that's supposed to be representative.

Go ahead and get vaccinated if you think that's best for you, but please reciprocate that and respect the autonomy of others.

[–]Wrangel 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

Flip a coin 160 times what are the odds of getting 160+ heads?

A number so small that coin flip calculator can't calculate it. In fact if 40 people had gotten the virus who had been vaccinated the risk of the vaccine not working at all would be 0.000000000003091. The confidence intervals were provided in the article published we can with a very high degree of certainty conclude that the vaccines are highly effective. The math is published in the article so if you want to critique their stats send them an email showing where they went wrong.

As for vaccines a large portion of the point is to stop the spread through herd immunity. People don't want people who carry disease around them.

[–]Nombre27 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

The math is published in the article so if you want to critique their stats send them an email showing where they went wrong.

I don't think you read what I wrote.

I can accept that that is the proper way to report the data but looking at that data doesn't leave me convinced, especially since they didn't go and test all the people in both groups, they're relying on a sample of 0.04%-0.8% as if that's supposed to be representative.

[–]Wrangel 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Those were the people who got sick. The study was blinded so the participants did not know if they had the vaccine or a control.

[–]Nombre27 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

We appear to be talking past one another, so never mind. I know what blinding is but thanks anyway.