Myth that COVID vaccine harms fertility is completely false, health experts say

COVID-19 vaccines do not cause infertility, health experts in Kansas and Missouri say.

Here and across the country, medical professionals and public health officials have noted that the false belief that the vaccines interfere with fertility is a roadblock to people getting vaccinated. That’s despite the fact that those assertions have already been knocked down many times for lack of evidence.

Misinformation campaigns are responsible for spreading the “completely false” idea that the vaccine causes infertility, said Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at The University of Kansas Health System.

“We know that these vaccines right now continue to be a miracle of modern science and medicine,” he said. “To have these vaccines, which elicit very good immune responses to all the variants that we have seen, they are lifesaving and preventive measures that people still don’t want to take for one reason or another.”

One of the reasons doctors hear from patients is that they fear it can affect fertility. Lisa Morris, a University of Missouri Health Care doctor, said there is no medical or scientific mechanism for the vaccine to interact with a woman’s reproductive organs.

Albert Hsu, a reproductive endocrinologist at MU Health Care, said men who are concerned about their fertility should get the vaccine because there is early evidence that COVID-19 negatively impacts sperm production.

More resources on the topic can be found here:

University of Missouri Health Care: Does the COVID-19 Vaccine Affect Fertility? Here’s What the Experts Say

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: COVID-19 Vaccines While Pregnant or Breastfeeding

Johns Hopkins Medicine: COVID-19 Vaccines: Myth Versus Fact

World Health Organization: Vaccine myths vs science

COVID-19 in Missouri

In June and July of 2021, vaccine hesitation contributed to a surge of COVID cases in Missouri.

The state has seen a 93% increase in cases over the past two weeks, according to a New York Times analysis, putting Missouri in the number two spot for the most new cases in the country behind Arkansas.

On Thursday, the Kansas City metropolitan area added 438 new cases, the highest number of new daily cases since Feb. 4.

Missouri has recorded a total of 541,923 cases. The seven-day positive test rate has been on the rise and sits at 13.5%.

Meanwhile, vaccinations have slowed with 45.8% of the state’s population initiating vaccination, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

Nationally, 55.8% have had at least one dose, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

This story was originally published July 16, 2021 at 12:32 PM.

Katie Moore

The Kansas City Star

816-234-4312

Katie Moore was an enterprise and accountability reporter for The Star. She covered justice issues, including policing, prison conditions and the death penalty. She is a University of Kansas graduate and began her career as a reporter in 2015 in her hometown of Topeka, Kansas.