Pharma industry rebuts Siddaramaiah's claims on Covid vax, heart attacks

The chief minister said the government was probing if Covid vaccines -- which were "hastily approved" during the pandemic -- could be among the reasons behind these incidents

Leaders of the Indian pharmaceutical industry and scientific community on Thursday strongly objected to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s claim, linking sudden deaths in Hassan district to potential side effects of Covid-19 vaccines, saying that such statements could fuel “vaccine hesitancy”.

 

The industry labelled these statements as “misinformed” and “damaging to public trust.”

 

In a post on social media platform X on July 1, Siddaramaiah claimed that over 20 people had died of heart attacks in Hassan district within a month. He announced the formation of an expert committee led by Dr. CN Manjunath, Director of the Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular