The claim: Post implies country singer Jake Flint died from the COVID-19 vaccine
In April 2021, country singer Jake Flint shared an image of his COVID-19 vaccine card on Instagram.
“Fully Vaxed to the max and ready to make some tracks to Halifax or wherever else,” reads the caption of the post, which was recently deleted. “Key West preferably.”
Now, some social media users are connecting Flint’s comment from more than a year and a half ago to his recent death on Nov. 27.
A Nov. 30 Instagram post (direct link, archived link) featured a screenshot of Flint’s 2021 Instagram caption, as well as a screenshot of a Yahoo News headline about Flint’s death. The post received more than 1,000 likes in six days.
The user captioned the post “unknown causes,” implying a link between the two that other users echoed in the comments.
“It’s so sad that so many people fell for the ‘Vaccines is safe and effective’ myth,” one Instagram user commented. “Criminal what government and big Pharma have done to society and are getting away with.”
But the implied claim here is wrong. Flint, who was 37 years old, did not die from the COVID-19 vaccine, his publicist told USA TODAY. The cause of death has not been announced, and an autopsy report is pending.
USA TODAY reached out to the Instagram user who shared the post for comment.
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Flint’s death not tied to COVID-19 vaccine; cause not yet announced
Flint did not die from a COVID-19 vaccine, Clif Doyal, Flint’s publicist, told USA TODAY in an email.
“I can verify from (his family), and from my own personal knowledge, that Jake Flint’s sudden and tragic death was not related in any way to the COVID-19 vaccine,” Doyal said. “Pending an official autopsy report there will be no further comment.”
Flint received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on March 29, 2021, and his second dose on April 19, 2021, according to Doyal. Flint received no additional coronavirus vaccines.
Fact check:Bodybuilder Doug Brignole died of COVID-19 infection, not vaccination
COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Adverse reactions, including death, are rare. The CDC and other federal agencies continue to monitor the safety of the vaccines, and healthcare providers are required to report any death after a COVID-19 vaccination.
As of Nov. 30, more than 655 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been administered in the United States, according to the CDC. Health officials have not identified any connection between the vaccine and excess deaths across that population.
Social media users have erroneously connected the deaths of other public figures with the COVID-19 vaccine, including claims falsely linking the shot to the deaths of bodybuilder Doug Brignole and DJ and music producer Matthew Ward, also known as Mighty Mouse.
Our rating: Missing context
Based on our research, we rate MISSING CONTEXT the implication that Flint died from the COVID-19 vaccine. Flint’s recent death was not related to the COVID-19 vaccine, and the singer received his COVID-19 vaccination shots more than a year and a half ago.
Our fact-check sources:
- Clif Doyal, Dec. 2, Email exchange with USA TODAY
- Yahoo News, Nov. 29, Country singer Jake Flint, 37, dies unexpectedly just hours after his wedding
- The Oklahoman, Nov. 28, Oklahoma, Red Dirt singer-songwriter Jake Flint, 37, dies just hours after his wedding
- CDC, Dec. 5, Selected Adverse Events Reported after COVID-19 Vaccination
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