: Experts from the CDC and various medical journals attribute the 2021 excess deaths to the spread of highly contagious variants like Delta and Omicron , which caused significant mortality even in younger groups.
The book's claims have been widely challenged by public health experts and fact-checkers :
: Some reports, such as those from the Associated Press, have identified individuals featured in the book whose deaths were attributed to non-vaccine causes (e.g., undiagnosed pre-existing conditions) despite being used as examples of "sudden death". Cause Unknown - Ed Dowd
: He contends that a 10% increase in excess deaths is typically a once-in-200-year event; thus, a 40% jump represents an "earth-shaking" anomaly.
: Critics argue Dowd commits the post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy—assuming that because deaths rose after vaccine mandates, the vaccines must be the cause. : Experts from the CDC and various medical
: He argues that the increase cannot be fully explained by COVID-19 itself (which he claims was becoming less virulent by 2021), suicides, drug overdoses, or missed cancer screenings. Scientific and Critical Reception
: Dowd's primary thesis is that the introduction of mass COVID-19 vaccination campaigns and employment mandates in 2021 is the only major variable that changed to account for this sudden spike. : Critics argue Dowd commits the post hoc
Published in 2022 by Skyhorse Publishing in partnership with Children’s Health Defense, this book argues that there was an unprecedented and unexplained surge in excess mortality among young and working-age people starting in 2021. Edward Dowd, a former BlackRock portfolio manager, uses his background in financial pattern recognition to analyze actuarial and insurance data.