COVID Excess Deaths Paper Retracted Over Misinformation

The BMJ Public Health has retracted a study on excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic due to concerns about misinformation in the discussion section regarding potential causes. Princess Máxima Center in the Netherlands found that the article unfairly focused on the possibility that COVID-19 containment measures and vaccination might have caused excess mortality, when the paper did not actually investigate any causes.

The investigation also revealed that the study misleadingly cited literature supporting its arguments while neglecting relevant literature that offered alternative interpretations. Corresponding author Saskia Mostert, MD, PhD, was not available for cooperation with the investigation, but later agreed to make changes, which the journal deemed insufficient due to the imbalanced discussion of mortality causes and the lack of rigor.

Mostert testified at a Senate hearing about alleged psychological manipulation and censorship during the pandemic, and two co-authors agreed with the retraction but did not see the article as containing misinformation. The paper, published in May 2024, originally followed an expression of concern a month later.