A Wyoming health official involved in the state's COVID-19 response described vaccines as biological weapons and a plot to spread communism

• A Wyoming health official involved in the state's COVID-19 response described vaccines as biological weapons and a plot by Russia and China to spread communism worldwide.
• Igor Shepherd, the Readiness and Countermeasures Program Manager, referred to the "so-called pandemic" and said volunteers were part of communist plots to hurt the US.
• He made the comments at a November 10 event held by the Keep Colorado Free and Open group, which advocates for constitutional rights amid the pandemic, but they only surfaced this week.

A Wyoming health official involved in the state's COVID-19 response described vaccines as biological weapons and a plot by Russia and China to spread communism worldwide.

Igor Shepherd, the Readiness and Countermeasures Program Manager, referred to the "so-called pandemic" and said volunteers who had a vaccine were part of communist plots to hurt the US.

He made the baseless and unsubstantiated claims at a November 10 event held by the Keep Colorado Free and Open group, which advocates for constitutional rights amid the pandemic, but they only surfaced this week.

During his almost an hour and a half long talk, Shepherd added: "The plan of destruction right now is going at full speed."

Kim Deti, a spokesperson from the Wyoming Department of Health, told AP: "All of the things we've said for months and the thousands of hours of dedicated work from our staff and our local partners on this response effort and our excitement for the hope the vaccine offers make our overall department position of the pandemic clear."

The news comes as experts warn anti-vaxxer concerns about a COVID-19 vaccine could slow the end of the pandemic.

A WHO spokesperson previously told Business Insider that these views could be "dangerous" and "are not supported by science."

They added: "Refusal to be vaccinated can lead to gaps in herd immunity and have a range of consequences. These consequences can go far beyond the health of individuals and communities and have a broader impact on society and economies as well."

Shepherd's baseless claims also undermined the state's public health measures to limit the virus's spread and plans to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine in the coming months, AP added.

However, Governor Mark Gordon held a news conference three days later, calling those who did not take the pandemic seriously "knuckleheads," declined to comment on Shepherd's remarks.

There have been 278,996 US COVID-19 deaths and a 12.5% case rise in Wyoming this week, according to Johns Hopkins University.