Shawn Kuhn, a 21-year-old majoring in exercise and sports science at the University of Georgia (UGA), was taken to three different hospitals for at least six weeks. In a social media post on Oct. 10, his father said that he was eventually placed in a medically induced coma and was put on a ventilator.
According to his obituary, Kuhn was "an avid UGA Bulldog fan with a passion for serving others." (Related: New Zealand records its first Pfizer vaccine-linked death.)
At UGA, Kuhn was working toward a bachelor's degree in exercise and sports science. The student also worked as a certified personal trainer at UGA's Ramsey Student Center. A competitive fisherman, Kuhn also enjoyed hiking.
Libby Buchanan, a UGA alumna and Kuhn's friend, describes him as "one of the most caring, helpful and fun people" she's known and met at UGA. "Since that day in 2018, Shawn and me have kept being friends. Anytime you were around Shawn, you couldn't help but smile and laugh. He never spoke bad about anyone and only encouraged you to be the best," added Buchanan.
Sharla Brook Kuhn, Kuhn's older sister, says he was fully vaccinated.
According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 30,177 patients were hospitalized or died even though they were fully vaccinated as of Oct. 4.
The CDC has acknowledged that the number isn't an accurate tally of all SARS-CoV-2 infections among fully vaccinated individuals. The agency notes that a vaccine breakthrough case occurs if someone tests positive for coronavirus at least 14 days after being fully vaccinated.
Despite Big Pharma's reassurance that vaccines are the key to stopping the pandemic, the CDC adds that vaccine breakthrough cases are expected and that fully vaccinated people will get sick while some can be hospitalized or die from coronavirus.
As of Oct. 12, over 187 million people in America have been fully vaccinated. The CDC is monitoring cases among vaccinated persons and evaluating trends to keep tabs on who is at risk for severe coronavirus following vaccine breakthrough infection.
The CDC has also warned that those with vaccine breakthrough infections can still spread the virus and infect others.
The federal agency stopped tracking all COVID vaccine breakthrough cases on May 1. Instead, it only tracks breakthrough cases that result in hospitalization or death. According to the CDC, the change has been made to "maximize the quality of data collected on cases of greatest clinical and public importance."
Health officials have expressed their concerns over the reports of more coronavirus breakthrough cases in Pennsylvania. In the past month, at least 26 percent of almost 5,000 hospitalizations for coronavirus-related issues within the state of Pennsylvania were among fully vaccinated people.
In September, Cleveland Clinic reported that at least 15 percent of all new coronavirus cases it treated were breakthrough infections and that 10 percent of hospitalizations occurred in vaccinated individuals.
Officials at Cleveland Clinic have explained that patients who were vaccinated and ended up hospitalized were often older than 65 or had significant underlying medical conditions.
On Oct. 14, vaccine advisers to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) unanimously recommended Moderna's coronavirus vaccine booster shots for people 65 and older along with "other vulnerable" adults.
Moderna has requested authorization for a 50-microgram booster dose, which is half the size of the 100-microgram doses used in the primary series of the two-dose vaccine. It can be administered at least six months after someone has received the second dose – and only for specific groups.
The FDA's final decision on Moderna boosters could be announced soon.
Visit Pandemic.news for more updates on the coronavirus pandemic and vaccine deaths and injuries.
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