Three Canadian doctors didn’t die from getting a COVID-19 booster

Three doctors who worked for the same hospital group in Ontario, Canada, died in close succession in July 2022. Anti-vaccination crusaders seized on this coincidence to push the false claim that COVID-19 vaccine boosters caused their deaths. But that’s not true. Let’s take a look at the facts.

COVID-19 vaccine boosters did not cause the deaths of three doctors who work for the same hospital group in Ontario, Canada.

Three doctors who work for Trillium Health Partners, which operates several hospitals in Ontario, died in close succession in July 2022.

Their deaths were not “sudden.”

Two of the doctors died after battles with cancer, and the third was “seriously ill,” according to his office.

NewsLit takeaway

NewsLit takeaway: Disinformation about COVID-19 vaccines often capitalizes on coincidences, including the deaths of celebrities and other public figures, to manufacture “evidence” that supports the false belief that the COVID-19 vaccines are unsafe. In this case, the deaths of three doctors roughly coincided with Ontario expanding access to a fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccines. Be wary of social media posts that seek to forge a false connection between COVID-19 vaccines — which have been widely proven safe and effective — and unrelated events.

Featured Fact-Checks

“Fact Check-Three physicians’ deaths not related to COVID-19 vaccine, Canadian hospital says” (Reuters Fact Check).
“Deaths of three doctors in Canada were neither sudden nor linked to COVID-19 vaccines” (Monique Curet, PolitiFact).