Bill Gates' daughter Jennifer jokes about conspiracy theory after getting Covid-19 vaccine
(CNN)Jennifer K. Gates, the daughter of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, got her first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine on Friday and offered a lighthearted debunking of one conspiracy theory around it.
"Sadly
the vaccine did NOT implant my genius father into my brain - if only
mRNA had that power.....!" she wrote with a winking emoji in a post on Instagram.
The quip is a reference to her father Bill Gates, the billionaire tech mogul, who has centered his philanthropic efforts with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on improving vaccine technology and access in the developing world. He has also long warned about the possibility of a viral pandemic, well before Covid-19 spread across the globe.
His
vaccine advocacy has made him a central figure in anti-vaccine
conspiracy theories. One outlandish belief is that he is using the
pandemic to push a vaccine with a microchip that would control people's minds or track their location. (Here's what is actually in the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines.)
In a CNN town hall in July, Gates said he worried the false theories could have a very real impact.
"I hope it doesn't create vaccine hesitancy," he said.
Aside
from the joke, Jennifer Gates' Instagram post showed the 24-year-old
medical student wearing a mask and holding up an "I got my Covid-19
vaccine" sticker.
"I
am beyond privileged to receive my first dose of mRNA to teach my cells
to amount a protective immune response to this virus," she wrote in the
caption. "As a medical student and aspiring physician, I am grateful it
will give me protection and safety for my future practice. I'd urge
everyone to read more and strongly consider it for yourself and your
families when you are provided the option. The more people who get
immunized, the safer our communities are for everyone."
She also offered her thanks to those who made the vaccine possible.
"Saying
thank you doesn't begin to describe my gratitude for the physicians,
scientists, public health experts, pharmacists and so many others who
made this achievement in modern medicine possible. Our healthcare
workers have been working tirelessly to save as many lives as possible,
and this vaccine will only increase their ability to succeed," she
wrote.
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