We were quite surprised and dismayed to see that the topic of the COVID vaccine has once again been dredged up in an advertisement you have chosen to run this week under the banner of free speech.

Promoting an organization which makes broad and fallacious statements in what can be  conceived as either an attempt by you to stir controversy to enhance readership, or a very poor decision on your part when choosing which advertisers you agree to post, is -is disappointing to say the least. And yes, the advertisers you promote are a reflection of who you are and what you stand for. We assumed you held yourself to a higher standard.

While there are multiple facets to any discussion, a weekly newspaper is hardly the forum to discuss the nuances involved when making medical decisions with a family or creating policies that affect a nation. It is, unfortunately, a great opportunity to promote conspiracy theories and further mistrust in the medical community. In fact, this letter will not serve as a defense against the erroneous claims promoted by Truth613. They are not worth justifying. What we will say is that we, at Tenafly Pediatrics, have seen no deaths or any of the purported complications claimed in the advertisement due to the vaccine, despite having thousands of our patients vaccinated.

These past three years with COVID have led to deaths, an increase in mental health issues and a large burden on many aspects of our society. Solutions do not come overnight, and often the first decisions made are not always the correct or final one. In this day and age, we have to remind ourselves that the world does not work like an Amazon Prime membership, where you get exactly what you want the next day right at your doorstep. Like the virus itself, things change and evolve. Over time, we have developed better treatments and ways to manage this virus, including a vaccine that can help.

We can only hope The Jewish Link takes a bit more responsibility in its decisions going forward.

Daniel Anderson, MD                                 Sally Choi, MD

Elana Clark, MD                                     Avigayil Elkin, MD

Maureen Grossi, MD                             Paul Harlow, MD

Robert Jawetz, MD                               Eun Joo Kim, MD

Sunmee Kim, MD                         Joshua Menasha, MD

Lisa Michael, MD                                     Darren Saks, MD

David Schaumberger, MD              Michael Smith, MD

Larry Stiefel, MD                                        Ilana Stock, MD

Lynn Sugarman, MD                 Samantha Vemula, MD

Evan Weissman, DO                         David Wisotsky, MD