Airbnb listing taken down over 'dangerous' Covid rule

An Airbnb listing has been removed for violating the company's policy and promoting blatant misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines.

Charlie Warzel, who has had bylines in both Buzzfeed and the New York Times, explained on Twitter he was sent an Airbnb listing for a cabin in Montana.

The listing had a very odd requirement for guests hoping to stay at the Airbnb.

"WE ARE RESTRICTING THE CABIN TO NON-COVID VACCINATED GUESTS ONLY," a screenshot of the listing shared by Mr Warzel reads.

"For the health and safety not only for other guests but also ourselves, all covid vaccinated guests are asked to find another vacation rental that allows vaccinated guests.

"It has not been scientifically proven and is clearly stated on the vaccine manufacturers web sites, that the mRNA protein in the ingredients shed through the vaccinated person's skin, breath etc, and will be passed along to non-vaccinated people."The Covid-19 vaccination does not "shed", as several experts have said time and time again.

"Vaccine shedding can only occur when a vaccine contains a weakened version of the virus," the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says, adding none of the vaccines authorised in the US contain a live virus.

Speaking to ABC's Fact Check, infectious diseases paediatrician Professor Robert Booy said Covid-19 vaccines do not have live elements in them.

Mr Warzel asked the host how they verify whether someone has not been vaccinated yet and shared the response on Twitter.

The host said they rely on a honour system, trusting if someone says they are not vaccinated they can stay and perhaps after they saw his tweets about the Airbnb, the host said his request to stay there had been "denied".

Mr Warzel said he was only asking the host about the cabin, not requesting to rent it.

Speaking to Buzzfeed, Mr Warzel said it was "odd" the "vectors for misinformation" are continuing to become increasingly more "obscure".

"It's not just a 60-minute video that somebody produced, or a tweet that someone wrote, but you're browsing weekend getaways in western Montana and you come across this potentially dangerous misinformation about Covid," he said.

"It's very dystopian."

An Airbnb spokesperson confirmed to Buzzfeed News the cabin's listing was suspended "for promoting Covid misinformation in violation of our content policy".

The vaccine shedding myth debunked

Claims of vaccine shedding have been debunked by medical experts several times now.

Several theories about conspiracies regarding "shedding" and how that may impact non-vaccinated people have circulated.

Earlier this year, one conspiracy theory claimed the Covid-19 vaccine was "shedding" from one person to another and unvaccinated people were experiencing changes to their period or experiencing miscarriages after being in close proximity to vaccinated people.

One false Instagram post accused vaccinated people of “negatively impacting women’s menstrual cycles” and falsely claimed that miscarriages were “up 400%”, the Associated Press reported.

Data published in the New England Journal of Medicine by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, assured that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and does not cause miscarriages.

With Reuters and the Associated Press.

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