Florida Sues Pfizer Over Claims It Hid Myocarditis and Miscarriage Risks as COVID Vaccine Sales Hit $80B

Florida has sued Pfizer and its chief executive, Albert Bourla, alleging that the company marketed its COVID-19 vaccine as safe while withholding information about its risks, including heart inflammation in young people.

Attorney General James Uthmeier filed the 49-page complaint on Thursday, 1 October 2026, in the Circuit Court for the 19th Judicial Circuit in St Lucie County, under Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.

The state alleges Pfizer made more than £59 billion ($80 billion) in COVID-19 vaccine sales while misrepresenting the vaccine's safety and its ability to prevent transmission.

Pfizer rejected the allegations, saying its statements about the vaccine had been accurate and science-based.

Heart Inflammation, Pregnancy, Transmission and Price

The central allegation concerns safety disclosures. The complaint alleges that Pfizer told consumers its vaccine posed no material safety risks while failing to disclose potential risks, including heart inflammation and other adverse events, Reuters reported.

It alleges the company knew of data connecting the vaccine to myocarditis and pericarditis in minors. Pregnancy forms a second strand. The state alleges Pfizer had reason to believe the vaccine could cause adverse events, including miscarriage, in women in the first trimester of pregnancy.

The complaint also alleges that Pfizer urged people to get vaccinated to protect others, even though its clinical trials were not designed to establish whether the vaccine prevented transmission of the virus.

Market conduct is the final strand. Florida accuses Pfizer of using unfair tactics to dominate the market, alleging the company spent more than £7.4 billion ($10 billion) on advertising between 2020 and 2023 and then nearly quadrupled the price per dose in 2023, from about £22 ($30) to between £81 and £96 ($110 to $130).

Albert Bourla Named Personally

Uthmeier chose to sue the chief executive alongside the company, alleging that Bourla knew of safety risks while the company publicly assured consumers otherwise.

The complaint characterises Bourla as having called Floridians who raised safety concerns criminals.

In a 2021 interview with the Atlantic Council, Bourla applied that word to people who deliberately spread what he described as vaccine misinformation, distinguishing them from those hesitant about vaccination.

The attorney general framed the case in stark terms. On X, he said the state was suing Pfizer for deceptively marketing its products as safe, making billions, while pregnant women were miscarrying and teenagers were having heart attacks.

Myocarditis, the condition at the centre of the complaint's cardiac allegations, is inflammation of the heart muscle and is distinct from a heart attack.

Florida is seeking a court order halting the alleged conduct, civil penalties of £7,370 ($10,000) per violation, or £11,060 ($15,000) where older or disabled people were harmed, and the disgorgement of profits.

Pfizer's Response and the Medical Evidence

Pfizer disputes the claims. 'The representations made by Pfizer about its COVID-19 vaccine have been accurate and science-based, and the company stands behind the safety and efficacy of its vaccine,' the company said, adding that the allegations had no merit and that it would respond in court.

The medical evidence differs across the allegations. Myocarditis and pericarditis are recognised as rare side effects of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, seen most often in adolescent and young adult males, and the US Food and Drug Administration has required information about them in the vaccines' labelling since 2021.

The evidence on miscarriage points the other way. A 2023 meta-analysis of 21 studies covering 149,685 women found no statistically significant increase in miscarriage among vaccinated women, although the authors rated the certainty of the evidence as low, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says COVID-19 mRNA vaccination in pregnancy has not been associated with increased pregnancy loss, including in the first trimester.

Florida's own earlier inquiry reached a different conclusion from the new lawsuit. A statewide grand jury reported in January 2025 that it had found no evidence that COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers broke federal or state law in making and distributing the vaccines, the Florida Phoenix reported, although the new case concerns alleged deceptive marketing.

Florida is not the first state to bring such a case. In June 2024, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach sued Pfizer under his state's consumer protection law, alleging misleading statements about the vaccine's safety, efficacy, effects in pregnancy and link to myocarditis.

The case now moves to a Florida court, where the state's allegations will be tested against Pfizer's defence under Florida's consumer protection law.