FDA Expands COVID-19 Vaccine Death Probe to Adults

The Food and Drug Administration has broadened its investigation into potential deaths linked to COVID-19 vaccines to encompass adults as well as children, officials confirmed this week, amid ongoing scrutiny of the shots' safety under the leadership of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

The probe, which began in September 2025, initially centered on reports of child fatalities following vaccination. A leaked internal memo from late November, attributed to Dr. Vinay Prasad, the FDA's top vaccine regulator, stated that the agency had identified at least 10 children's deaths as resulting from the vaccines. The document highlighted myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, as a possible factor, a rare side effect previously noted by health authorities, particularly in adolescent males. However, the memo provided no supporting evidence or details on the cases, and the FDA has not released additional data to substantiate the claims.

Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, described the review as thorough and spanning multiple age groups. "Health officials will soon release documents laying out that framework and...