Minnesota Bill Against Vaccines Promotes Disinformation

A bill introduced in Minnesota attempts to criminalize vaccine technology that has been proven safe and effective, and infectious disease experts are baffled.

A group of Republican members of the Minnesota House of Representatives have introduced a bill that would target specific vaccines and medical treatments for criminal punishment, according to a recent report from the Minnesota Reformer.

The bill, HF 3219, is described as the “mRNA Bioweapons Prohibition Act” and references “mRNA injections and products designated as weapons of mass destruction” and “mRNA injections and products prohibited,” according to the website of the Minnesota Legislature.

According to the news report describing the bill, its authors, in order to get attention, seem to be tossing in trigger words, such as “nanoparticle injections” and “weapons of mass destruction,” that are not applicable in the context of vaccines, said David J. Cennimo, MD, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics in the division of infectious disease at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey, in an interview.

“The COVID-19 vaccines have excellent track records in safety and effectiveness, which is widely known,” he said.

Part of the language of the bill’s introduction that Cennimo found particularly disturbing refers to “nanotechnology or nanoparticles that alter genes and create a biosynthetic cell replication.” This statement is overbroad and not grounded in science, Cennimo emphasized. “Nanoparticles can be very useful in protecting the vaccine delivery and enhancing immune recognition which allows for lower doses to achieve high efficacy,” he said.

An opinion piece published in Nano Today in 2021 explained in detail how nanotechnology enables the effectiveness of mRNA vaccines such as those used against COVID-19.

“The bill seems to ban an entire technology field, with no proven concerns, which would potentially limit or end groundbreaking therapeutics,” said Cennimo. In fact, mRNA vaccines, and RNA in general, work outside of the nucleus, he said. “The vaccines encode a protein which is made by the cell to stimulate an immune response,” he said. This process cannot “alter genes” as the bill’s language suggests, he added.

Furthermore, data support the overall safety of vaccines, including mRNA vaccines, Cennimo told Medscape Medical News.

“Yes, some individuals experienced a relatively mild and self-limited myocarditis, noting the risk of myocarditis form SARS CoV-2 infection remained much greater,” he said. However, no evidence suggests the morbidity or mortality of vaccines implied in the Minnesota Reformer article, he noted.

Although the Minnesota Reformer article states that the bill has no chance of progressing, its existence and the potential for introduction of similar bills in other states appears to be another way to sow fear and attempt to discredit scientific advancements, said Cennimo. “While the COVID-19 vaccines were, and remain, a technological triumph, many clinicians are looking at mRNA vaccine technology as the next big step in individualizing the cancer fight; this is what is at stake with these types of bills,” he said.

Cennimo had no financial conflicts to disclose.