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Fact check: Wife of Pfizer CEO 'alive and well,' not dead from COVID-19 vaccine

Ella Lee   | Paste BN
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The claim: The wife of Pfizer's CEO died from COVID-19 vaccine complications

Misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccines continues to spread online, stoking fear about rare or nonexistent side effects. Now, an article claims those fears were realized for the family of a Pfizer executive. 

"Myriam Bourla – the wife of Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla – has died from complications from the COVID-19 vaccine early Wednesday, according to her doctor," reads a Nov. 10 story from Canadian website the Conservative Beaver.

The article goes on to say she "passed away in the emergency room at New York-Presbyterian Lawrence Hospital after being brought in by paramedics."

The post received more than 1,900 interactions on Facebook within three days, according to the social media analytics tool CrowdTangle. Paste BN has previously debunked false claims from the Conservative Beaver, including an article that wrongly claimed Albert Bourla had been arrested for fraud related to the COVID-19 vaccine.

This article is bogus, too.

Myriam Bourla has been seen publicly since the Conservative Beaver claimed she died, and news of her alleged death was not published in any major newspaper. A Pfizer spokesperson confirmed she is "alive and well." The COVID-19 vaccines do not cause death.

Paste BN reached out to the Conservative Beaver for comment. 

Fact check: Fabricated story that Pfizer CEO was arrested for COVID-19 vaccine fraud 

Pfizer debunks claim

The article claiming Myriam Bourla died was published Nov. 10. But a day later, Albert Bourla shared a photo on Twitter of the pair attending the Atlantic Council's Distinguished Leadership Awards. 

Paste BN could find no obituaries or other evidence indicating Myriam Bourla has died. Other independent fact-checking organizations have debunked the claim.

Amy Rose, a spokesperson for Pfizer, confirmed Myriam Bourla is "alive and well."

"It is unconscionable that a person posing as a journalist would spread such lies about our CEO and his family with the goal of undermining confidence in a vaccine that has been given to hundreds of millions of people worldwide," Rose said.

As Paste BN has previously reported, the COVID-19 vaccines are not linked to death.

More: Want enhanced clarity on the news? Join text chat with Paste BN's expert fact-checkers.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the vaccines are "safe and effective" and that they have undergone the "most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history." Spokesperson Martha Sharan previously told Paste BN “statements that imply that deaths following vaccination equate to deaths caused by vaccination are scientifically inaccurate, misleading, and simply irresponsible.”

“Vaccines are one of the tools that are going to help the U.S. get back to normal life,” she said.

Our rating: False

Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that the wife of Pfizer's CEO died from COVID-19 vaccine complications. Myriam Bourla has been seen publicly since the Conservative Beaver claimed she died, and news of her alleged death was not published in any major newspaper. A spokesperson confirmed she is "alive and well."

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