Kentucky is among four states that recorded serious COVID-19 vaccine case-reporting rates above a national threshold, according to an analysis of federal vaccine safety data.
The review examined more than 900,000 adverse event reports submitted between 2020 and 2022 to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, which is co-managed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Researchers found Montana, South Dakota, Kentucky and Tennessee were the only states exceeding the national benchmark for serious case-reporting rates during the period analyzed. Serious reports in VAERS include hospitalizations, life-threatening illnesses and deaths.
VAERS is a passive surveillance system designed to detect potential safety signals. Reports can be submitted by healthcare providers, patients or caregivers following vaccination. Federal health officials caution that a VAERS report alone does not establish that a vaccine caused a health event, only that it occurred after vaccination.
According to the CDC, Kentucky has one of the highest adult obesity rates in the country. Nearly 15 percent of adults have diabetes, and more than 40 percent have high blood pressure — conditions that increase the risk of severe health complications generally.
The analysis notes that federal safety monitoring systems flag potential signals based on reporting patterns but do not adjust for state-level baseline health conditions when identifying trends.
Both VAERS data and chronic disease statistics are publicly available. No federal agency has released a combined assessment examining state reporting patterns alongside underlying health profiles.
The full research analysis is available at:
https://baderlaw.com/research/vaccine-risk-signals-across-the-us/
https://inst.127mediahub.com/lt/2251799926445300/anumQm3VBjFp3-aPKS4A_
