17.08.2026 12:01
Minister of Health Prof. Dr. Kemal Memişoğlu put an end to the frequently discussed claims about vaccines and heart attacks in society during a meeting with press members. Responding to a question from Olgun Kızıltepe, News Director of Haberler.com, Memişoğlu stated that this situation is merely a misconception without any scientific basis.
Minister of Health Prof. Dr. Kemal Memişoğlu, at a press conference where he met with health reporters in Istanbul, put an end to the frequently debated claims in the public that "vaccines trigger heart attacks."
Minister of Health Prof. Dr. Kemal Memişoğlu met with health reporters in Istanbul on Saturday, August 15, 2026. At the event, Olgun Kızıltepe, News Director of Haberler.com, asked Minister Memişoğlu, "I don't know if it's selective perception, but it's said that there has been a serious increase in the number of people dying from heart attacks recently. And after these deaths, a prejudice has formed in society: the cause of these deaths is the coronavirus vaccine. As both a healthcare professional and the head of the health system, what would be your response to these rumors?"
"THIS IS COMPLETELY FALSE DISINFORMATION" Minister Memişoğlu, responding clearly to public speculation, emphasized that the claims have no scientific basis, stating, "There is a study showing that COVID increases coagulation in the cardiovascular system. The disease itself. The high effect caused by the disease, unfortunately, some people have attributed to the COVID vaccine. There is no such study or data regarding the vaccine. On the contrary, there are studies showing that it regulates these coagulation mechanisms. This is completely false disinformation."
"LET'S NOT SACRIFICE THE VACCINE ISSUE TO SOME PEOPLE'S PR" Continuing his remarks, Minister Memişoğlu said, "So, don't believe these scientifically," and added, "We are a ministry open to criticism. But we are the ministry that suffers the most from disinformation. Do you know why? When there is disinformation about an illness, people don't go to the hospital, receive incorrect treatment, or don't act as they should. Criticism can be directed at us. But misinformation directly affects our system and patients, thus harming people. Therefore, please, let's not sacrifice the vaccine issue to the PR of some people."
Highlights from Minister Memişoğlu's statements; "Türkiye's health system is one of the pride sources of our country. Especially in the last 25 years, Türkiye has experienced a great development process in health. Our President, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has shown all kinds of will and provided support for delivering people-oriented health services. One of the most important factors for the proper delivery of health services is having a strong army of healthcare workers. We have a quality, hardworking, goal-oriented healthcare workforce. When the infrastructure and organization are well-established and support is provided, Türkiye has become a country where everyone can easily access healthcare, which has a very strong social aspect and can also utilize technology. Today, over 3 million people come to Türkiye to receive health services. Countries around us are trying to take our health service as a model and are asking for our support. We are in a position to help many countries.
I will also ask for your support so that the Protective, Developmental, and Productive Health model can achieve its goals. I always say something, and most of you already know it: Each of you is as much a healthcare professional as we are. Because whatever we do as physicians and administrators in health, it is your news that will announce it and increase the culture and awareness of society.
"WE PUBLISHED THE REGULATION ON THE PROVISION AND COORDINATION OF HOME HEALTH AND PALLIATIVE CARE SERVICES" In our intensive care units, a quarter to a fifth of our patients were chronic and care-dependent patients who stayed for long periods. Now, by publishing the Regulation on the Provision and Coordination of Home Health and Palliative Care Services, we have defined something called 'palliative critical care service.' We integrated home health, remote health, and palliative care services. We established a central command center called ESKOM (Home Health Services Coordination Center). Of course, this is actually very detailed legislation. It's been a month since the legislation was issued, and its impact will become much clearer soon. With this legislation, we will make the remote care of patients who have long hospital stays and can stay at home much more effective. As society ages and families get smaller, we have to transition to a different model regarding the care of our elderly and health services. So, we created this model. Family physicians were also included in this system. If a family physician's patient needs palliative care, the family physician will report this to ESKOM, or if a palliative care patient is discharged from the hospital and placed at home, the family physician will automatically be informed to attend to this patient. We are establishing such a coordination system. We will do this with computer software. We have issued the legislation, and the software is now being finalized. Across Türkiye, we have 271,000 beds, with 7,822 beds allocated for palliative care. In Istanbul, we have 910 palliative care beds. We have no bed shortage for palliative care in Istanbul. The important thing is to manage the organization well.
"I HAVE VISITED 78 OF OUR 81 PROVINCES SO FAR" I believe this: When you lose contact with the field and don't establish dialogue with the field, you only apply what you know and see. The field teaches you a lot. I have toured 78 of our 81 provinces so far. We hold meetings there. Because we also have provinces where all parameters are different. In this way, we listened to their concerns and tried to solve their problems. For this reason, for two years, we traveled to provinces every Friday and Saturday.
"WE ISSUED 160 PIECES OF LEGISLATION IN TWO YEARS" We issued 160 pieces of legislation in two years. Among these, there is also one law. We will have 20-30 more legislative changes.
In November 2024, we amended the Family Medicine Regulation. We brought the 'Protective Health' aspect of the health system to the forefront and transitioned to a proactive family medicine system.
The number of family medicine units in Türkiye was around 25,000; today we have 31,000 family medicine units.
In Istanbul, we have 1,121 family medicine units; we opened 81 and will open 130 more.
In family medicine units, we enabled the prescription of approximately 1,850 medications, the issuance of health reports, the performance of traditional medicine (GETAT) practices, and the ability for family physicians to schedule hospital appointments for their patients if deemed necessary.
There are 34 Healthy Life Centers in Istanbul. In all Healthy Life Centers across Türkiye, which provide free services, there are pregnancy schools, child development specialists, psychologists, dietitians, and physiotherapists. Pilates and exercise are done. Everything is done from vaccines to cancer screening. Now, we also have family counselors from the Ministry of Family and Social Services.
Family physicians or hospital doctors can schedule appointments for their patients at Healthy Life Centers.
Citizens can also make appointments at Healthy Life Centers via MHRS.
"AVERAGE AGE IN TURKEY ROSE TO 78.5" In the bulletin published by TurkStat last month, our average age in Turkey has become 78.5, meaning it has increased. What was it before? It was 72 in 2002. Last year, it was 78.1. This is essentially one of the success parameters of the health system in the world. In other words, the longer you live, the better your health system is. Look at infant mortality rates. In 2002, infant mortality was 31.5 per thousand births, while today it has decreased to 7.8, and it fell from 9 per thousand in 2024 to 7.8 per thousand in 2025, meaning a decrease of about 1.2. This indicates that 3,000 more babies survived this year. Three thousand babies is not a small number. We reduced the maternal mortality rate at birth. The success of your health system is measured by these in the OECD.
"SMOKING IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT CAUSES OF DEATH" 34.7 percent of deaths are due to circulatory system diseases, and 16 percent are due to benign and malignant tumors. In other words, over 50 percent of deaths are caused by circulatory system diseases and tumors. Ischemic heart disease constitutes 42 percent of circulatory system diseases, and respiratory diseases, lung cancer, and laryngeal cancer constitute 30 percent of benign and malignant tumors. So, what do you think are the reasons for these? What is the cause of these causes of death—ischemic heart disease, stroke, circulatory disease, and lung cancer? Smoking.
Smoking is one of the most important causes of illness and death for our people in Turkey. In our country, 46 percent of men smoke. We are ranked second in the world; our place in the top three changes. Smoking is a bad habit; everyone knows that. We say nothing will happen to us, but it does. After it happens, we regret it. Last year, the sale of 8 billion packs of cigarettes in Turkey is not a right thing. We need to motivate people not to use it. We need to increase people's demand for health.
The main causes of over 50 percent of our causes of death are smoking, inactivity, and obesity. Obesity is another health risk of ours. We are talking about a society where nearly 30 percent have become morbidly obese, and the reasons for this are lifestyle, stress, and eating habits. In the 2000s, approximately one in three people in Turkey lived in rural areas. While 30 percent of the population lived in villages and rural areas, today only 6.6 out of 100 people live in rural areas. This essentially shows that lifestyle has changed, but eating habits have not diversified. Eating habits are still worsened with heavy meals in the morning, noon, and evening—and we have added fast food to them. Also, there is limited movement in the city. You move around more with vehicles. Consequently, you do not walk and do not exercise. Now, we are conducting studies on these issues. We will change these habits of society. You, members of the media, have great influence in this. We will create this awareness and culture in society together. I repeat: I think we need to create a demand for health rather than a demand for treatment in society. I ask for your support on this matter.
"WE ISSUED THE REGULATION ON ATHLETE HEALTH REPORTS" We issued the Regulation on Athlete Health Reports by working together with our Ministry of Youth and Sports. We implemented the declaration procedure. We facilitated sports, especially for children and young people. To get an athlete report, if you do not have a disease, you declare it via e-Pulse; you say, I do not have any disease, I want a report for this sport. We stated that declaration is not accepted for some sports. Because, for example, boxing is a very intense sport. A general health screening must be done properly. We worked on these one by one. Additionally, the entire health history of that person is scanned with artificial intelligence in e-Pulse. Suppose a 15-year-old child declares they are healthy, but they have previously had heart surgery. Then we ask them to consult a Pediatric Cardiology Specialist. This cannot be done in another country because there is no system like e-Pulse in the world. The world should take an example from us.
"OVER 30,000 PEOPLE IN TURKEY ARE WAITING FOR ORGAN TRANSPLANTS" We have difficulty finding cadaveric organ donations for organ transplantation. Along with the law, we made a change regarding organ transplantation. Now, organ donation can be made through e-Government and e-Pulse. The number of donations has reached 250,000 so far. With this law, we turned organ donation into a testament for the individual. The person says, 'I donate my organs after I die.' They do this through the system, and we ask this person: 'Should your relatives know?' If they say 'No, they should not know,' the moment they say this, we do not tell anyone. When you make an organ donation through e-Pulse, no one except you knows that you made that donation. Until when do they not know? When brain death is detected and death is declared, at the moment the Death Notification System is entered in the hospital, both your family, your doctor, and organ transplant teams are notified. Until then, no one has any knowledge of your donation.
Currently, over 30,000 people in Turkey are waiting for organs. We need to ensure organ donation is done through e-Government and increase the number of organ donations. Our country is one of the exemplary countries in the world in terms of organ centers, medicine, and infrastructure.
"79 MAJOR HOSPITALS WERE BUILT IN ISTANBUL IN THE LAST 24 YEARS" In the last 24 years, 79 major hospitals have been built in Istanbul. Twenty-eight hospitals were built only during the COVID-19 pandemic period. We built 27 city hospitals across Turkey. We are currently building the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Hospital with 1,453 beds in Istanbul. We will hopefully bring the city hospital with 4,000 beds in Sancaktepe into service in the second half of 2027. We have started the Haydarpaşa campus. We have started the project for Bakırköy Sadi Konuk Mental and Nervous Diseases Hospital. We have completed the project for Süreyyapaşa. We are trying to find financing, but we do not have many problems with bed capacity beyond our topic. In Esenyurt, we are hopefully making a bed plan. We aim to complete the Beykoz hospital in 2027, and Bayrampaşa as well. Also, there is Avcılar. We will make these as investments for Istanbul.
"WITH THE WELLNESS REGULATION. " We issued the wellness regulation. With the wellness regulation, we enabled the provision of health services to healthy people. We said that health services not performed for treatment purposes and not performed for a 6-month recovery period after treatment can also be offered by the private sector in the places we have defined. How did we do this? For example, a hotel with a thousand beds. Before this regulation was issued, a hotel owner or operator could not provide health services in the hotel. Now, you can establish a 'wellness facility' in a part of your hotel, a part of your facility, or independently. You define a responsible physician. Whether it is a dietitian, physiotherapist, child development specialist, or manual therapy, you can do everything. You will only obtain a license from the Ministry. We also require the facility to make a protocol with a hospital in this regard. That is, in case of an emergency, we require that hospital or medical center to intervene there.With the wellness legislation, we are enabling the private sector to also establish Healthy Life Centers. Thus, we want them to encourage people to live healthily. We have created a very clear and broad legislation. We will soon grant a license to such a place in Istanbul as well.
"E-NABIZ IS A VERY SECURE SYSTEM" No one can penetrate e-Nabız; it is a very secure system. It comes to us coded, and we do not see anyone. There can be no intervention in e-Nabız.
"WE WILL PRODUCE LOCAL VACCINES AND HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES IN TURKEY" We made a call regarding the local vaccine. We have made our plans for the production of 8 local vaccines. Hopefully, we will sign contracts with at least 6 of them within a few weeks and produce the local vaccine ourselves in Turkey. In fact, we will not only do the filling but also obtain the main cell, which we call the 'master cell'. In other words, we will do everything ourselves.
We have 13 local vaccines. We selected from among these vaccines. We are doing the filling for Hepatitis A ourselves. We will announce the others very soon. We have made our calls. We have prepared 8 of them, but we are finalizing agreements for 6. We have worked on them and are ready for production.
We have signed contracts for 2 ultrasound devices. Two companies will bring them from abroad along with their technology. Within 2 years, we will produce over 70 percent of our local ultrasound. We have also signed the contract for this. We are now producing it at Hacettepe and Technopark. Hopefully, we will lay the foundations of 2 factories very soon. Thus, Turkey will also produce its own ultrasound.
You know our own heart-lung pump; we made it together with ASELSAN. This is a very technological device. Heart surgeries cannot be performed without that device. Now we have started using it on patients. We started a month ago, and by the end of the year, we will move to mass production.
We have acquired the mobile X-ray device. We are producing ventilators. We are producing Home Vent. One of the most important ones, for example, we are producing capsule endoscopy in Turkey. We will begin human studies on it very soon. Instead of endoscopy, you know, you take it like a tablet. Films show your entire intestines and stomach. Only 2-3 countries do this. One of them is us. We developed it with its prototype at Technopark.
We especially have studies on immunological and cancer drugs. We will make Turkey's production capacity completely independent. We are now making ourselves capable of producing drugs, especially for cancer, molecular diseases like SMA, and immunotherapies. We will also start clinical studies on this very soon.
At TÜSEB, we did something like this: Which drugs does Turkey need that we bring from abroad or import? Which of these drugs do we need to produce in Turkey? We have made plans for these. We spoke with pharmaceutical companies. We said we will produce these ourselves.
Which strategic devices does Turkey need? We have currently identified 45. The number may increase. We need to be able to produce these 45 devices. As we experienced with COVID, if something does not come to you, you have to produce health services with these. You have to be able to produce them. We have identified them and are encouraging their production together with TÜSEB.
"WE WILL MAKE HEALTH TURKEY'S LOCOMOTIVE SECTOR" Which drugs does Turkey need that we bring from abroad or import? Which of these drugs do we need to produce in Turkey? We have made plans for these. We spoke with pharmaceutical companies. We said we will produce these ourselves.
Which strategic devices does Turkey need? We have currently identified 45. You have to produce health services with these. You must be able to produce them. We have identified them and are encouraging their production together with TÜSEB.
There is something called uretensaglik.gov.tr. Here, they have established a system from idea to product. If you have any idea, any health-related work or opinion, you can go there and apply.
Turkey will produce. And as the state, we are absolutely determined in this production. We have made our plans regarding this. We have made our projections regarding this. With our President's instruction, we are in a great state of preparation on this issue. Health will be Turkey's locomotive sector in production.
"WE WILL PRODUCE THE DRUGS AND DEVICES TURKEY NEEDS" We will not only provide health services. We will also produce the technology of health. We will also produce its science. We will also produce its devices. We will also produce its drugs. Turkey will be one of the central points of health not only for this region but for the world. We trust our infrastructure. We trust our human resources. We trust our knowledge.
"THERE IS NO PROBLEM REGARDING EBOLA IN TURKEY" Ebola is not on our side. It is on the African side. We are monitoring it with public health. Let me clearly say that there is no abnormal situation from our perspective. It exists in Africa. We have taken all our plans and preventive measures on this issue; there is no problem from our side. Currently, there is no such issue in Turkey.
"WE WILL DECIDE ON HPV IN LINE WITH SCIENTIFIC DATA" Regarding HPV, you know, we are doing something that does not exist in most parts of the world. We are conducting HPV screening. Our scientists are working on this issue. They said, 'Professor, you announced this, but we are discussing its counterpart. Because there is no need for this.'
Our HPV rates, our cancer rates, and our cancer-causing rates are different. Our HPV profile is also different. Therefore, they said let's discuss this, then do it. Today, if Turkey has included all 13 vaccines in its health program, and if HPV will benefit our people, we will also include HPV. There is no other country that has 13 vaccines completely free in its program. Some have six, some have seven, but today we have 13 vaccines in our health program.
STUDIES ON SMA We are also conducting a study on SMA. We will explain the results of those who collected donations for SMA, made promises abroad saying it would be beneficial, and what the outcome of that promise was. We are scientifically studying whether those patients recovered as a result of the SMA drug for which donations were collected, or not.
"TURKEY IS AN EXAMPLE TO THE WORLD IN THE HEALTH SYSTEM" I say it once more. In this regard, the Turkish Health System, the Turkish Ministry of Health, and the Republic of Turkey provide all kinds of money and all kinds of opportunities. If it truly benefits that child through scientific committees, we will obtain that drug and apply that treatment. I want to express this to our society and to everyone. In this matter, we receive the applications and evaluate them at the Ministry.
Today, when a citizen anywhere in the country needs it, the country sends its plane, sends its jet, sends its helicopter. Let the society know this. Today, as a health system, we are not taking examples from the world. The world is taking examples from us.
"WE WILL USE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE MORE EFFECTIVELY" We have published the external defibrillator regulation. We have made it mandatory to install these devices as locally produced ones.Both in crowded areas, in shopping malls, and in places like artificial turf fields. After a certain period, everyone will have to place those external defibrillators in crowded areas or sports areas.
We have started doing many things with artificial intelligence. We now conduct inspections based on a risk-based audit system rather than complaints. We receive data from all hospitals and procedures, including the private sector. If there is data outside the standard in this data, we show it to our managers with artificial intelligence. If a doctor uses the same procedure, the same material, or the same drug too much, or if a material is used outside the standard in a region, we bring all of these to our center with artificial intelligence thanks to the risk-based audit system.
We are conducting a study on mammography in Turkey. We will be able to make mammography diagnoses with artificial intelligence. We are working with a system supported by artificial intelligence with radiologist support. We made the mobile X-ray machine at ASELSAN. We put artificial intelligence on it. When this machine takes an X-ray, it can tell by itself within a few minutes, 'there is a suspicious lesion here.' We already use artificial intelligence in our database. Now we will do something else. We are starting to use artificial intelligence in many fields, from radiology. TÜSEB is working very well on these as well.
"WE WILL PROTECT THE EFFORTS OF OUR HEALTHCARE WORKERS" Please protect healthcare workers. The greatest wealth of this country is healthcare workers. Our greatest wealth is that healthcare workers are qualified and well-intentioned. Healthcare is a profession of dedication. Healthcare workers live for others. Healthcare is a profession of emotion. It must be done with love and with happiness.
Please also avoid any situation that would offend healthcare workers. Because they really work very, very hard. We work hard and we work well. We must not lose this. Because healthcare workers truly empathize with the troubles of other people. "