The inference that a 40 percent increase in the death rate of Americans 18 to 64 is caused by vaccines is baseless

On the show "Tucker Carlson Tonight" on Fox News, Charlie Kirk, conservative commentator and Turning Point USA founder, suggested that COVID-19 vaccines are contributing to higher mortality rates in the U.S. over the last few years. Carlson and Kirk were basing this wild speculation on the findings of life insurance company OneAmerica, whose CEO, J Scott Davison, said last month that death rates have risen by 40 percent among people ages 18-64 when compared to pre-pandemic levels. 

“We deserve answers, and some would conjecture, ‘Hey, does this have something to do with the fact that we might have done a mass inoculation strategy?’” Kirk asked Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Carlson, who’s made similar claims in the past, didn’t push back at all on his guest’s suggestion. On the show, we can hear Kirk saying "We have a 40 percent increase in death, it's not because of COVID." However, Davison did NOT say it wasn't COVID related. In fact, Davison said the data shows COVID deaths are greatly understated among working-age Americans. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains that excess deaths are associated with COVID-19 directly or indirectly. The rise in fatalities is largely associated with COVID-19, either directly from the disease or from other causes occurring in the context of health care shortages or overburdened health care systems.