Amid conversations and speculation about how many COVID-19 vaccine shots may ultimately be necessary to ward off the virus and its variants, some people are sharing a headline about Dr. Anthony Fauci that originated on a website that posts misinformation.
“Fauci wants Americans to get 4 shots per year,” the headline says.
“AND SO IT BEGINS,” wrote one Facebook account that posted it. “YOU SHEEP CAN ENJOY YOUR 5 SHOTS A YEAR. WAKE UP!”
This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
The headline was posted alongside a story that quotes one supposed anonymous source on a site called Real Raw News, which we’ve previously investigated. It has a disclaimer that the content it posts is satire.
Fauci, the country’s top infectious disease official, has not said that he wants Americans to get four shots a year.
Rather, on Nov. 23, a few days before this story was posted on Real Raw News, Fauci said that a majority of Americans who have been vaccinated against COVID-19Â should get a booster.
On Dec. 8, Pfizer officials said that a fourth vaccine dose could be necessary to protect against the omicron variant.
But there is no evidence that Fauci wants Americans to get four COVID-19 vaccine shots every year.
On Nov. 24, the Journal of the American Medical Association noted that some companies that produce COVID-19 vaccines are planning for annual COVID-19 vaccine boosters, but that it’s not yet clear if that will be necessary.
In any case, we know one thing: Fauci didn’t say that he wants Americans to get four shots each year.
We rate that claim False.
This fact check was originally published by PolitiFact, which is part of the Poynter Institute. It is republished here with permission. See the sources for this fact check here and more of their fact checks here.
