Embattled Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers claimed Friday he has an allergy to Covid-19 vaccines and that he is taking ivermectin, and lashed out against the "woke mob" allegedly out to "cancel" him.
Rogers, who tested positive for Covid-19 and won't play in his team's game Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs, has come under fire for not getting vaccinated.
"Look, I'm not, you know, some sort of anti-vax flat-earther. I am somebody who is a critical thinker," he told "The Pat McAfee Show."
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"I believe strongly in bodily autonomy and ability to make choices for your body: Not have to acquiesce to some woke culture or crazed group of individuals who say you have to do something. Health is not a one-size-fits-all for everybody."
"I consulted with a now good friend of mine Joe Rogan, after he got Covid and I've been doing a lot of stuff that he recommended," Rodgers said, adding that he has taken monoclonal antibodies and ivermectin.
Rogers said he has an "allergy to an ingredient that's in the mRNA vaccines" that are made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
The quarterback didn't immediately detail the allergy that blocks him from both the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccines. He also said he feared possible adverse effects from the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The number of people who have had anaphylactic reactions to Covid vaccines is very small, about 2 to 5 cases per million doses, said Dr. Niraj Patel of Atlanta, chair of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology's Covid-19 Vaccine Task Force.
"Putting this into perspective, you're as likely to get struck by lightning as you are to have an allergic reaction to a Covid vaccine," he said.