Nearly five years after the Food and Drug Administration rushed its OK of the COVID-19 vaccine, more Americans are reporting that they suffered “major” side effects, drawing a new demand for an investigation into government reports that few felt any health issues.
In a new national survey sure to renew concerns about the vaccines forced on the country in late 2020 and 2021, 10% of adults who got the shot said that they were whacked by “major side effects” and another 26% said they suffered minor side effects.
All told, that amounts to about 63 million people.
Overall, according to a new Rasmussen Reports survey shared with Secrets, 68% of U.S. adults — about 173 million — were vaccinated.
In a similar 2022 Rasmussen survey, 7% reported experiencing major side effects, and 34% reported minor side effects.
For those who ask why we've covered COVID-19 VAX injuries and deaths so early and so frequently it is partially because of people like these, my grandparents, and their lifelong dedication to medicine and public health. Ted Carroll, President. pic.twitter.com/mOmytucDNw
— Rasmussen Reports (@Rasmussen_Poll) August 28, 2025
Many adults remain very concerned about the vaccines produced by several companies to fight the coronavirus. For example, 46% of adults believe that the shot “caused a significant amount of unexplained deaths.”
Reports have downplayed the health impact of the vaccine, though many have complained that they continue to have no sense of taste or smell. The government continues to recommend that Americans get the vaccine.
A study promoted by the National Institutes of Health said, for example, “More than 95% of individuals had moderate and self-limiting side effects, with only 5% requiring medical evaluation and hospitalization. Most reported adverse effects were minor and required either no therapy or care at home.”
The new polling prompted a call from a key vaccine skeptic to investigate government reports that side effects were minimal.
Dr. Robert W. Malone told Secrets, “While all polling is subject to sampling and bias errors, these findings document a clear trend and suggest that official public health data significantly underreport the frequency and severity of adverse events experienced by U.S. residents with the COVID-19 vaccine products. The reasons for this discrepancy must be promptly and objectively investigated.”
Malone, a physician and biochemist, was recently appointed to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s revamped Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s advisory committee on immunization practices. He has been attacked by liberal lawmakers for questioning the vaccines.
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Rasmussen pollster Mark Mitchell said that while the difference between the 2022 and the new findings about those who felt side effects was minimal, it is significant that many have and still feel side effects.
“The point is that the number hasn’t gone away. And a significant chunk of Americans have a major side effect. And they are being ignored and the corporations have immunity,” said Mitchell.
