BC Conservatives Leader John Rustad has said he suffered heart problems after receiving his second COVID-19 vaccination.

He made the claim at a press conference on Tuesday. 

NowMedia has requested more information from Rustad’s party.

Rustad made the comment after the BC NDP sought to publicize a video in which the leader of the BC Conservatives said he regretted getting the COVID-19 vaccine.

On Wednesday, the party sent out another message to the media accusing Rustad of "dodging direct questions" about his comments on the vaccine. 

Below: Rustad speaking with NowMedia in April

According to the Canadian Press news agency, Rustad told reporters earlier this week that he suffered heart problems after getting his second shot. 

He added that, when he got his third shot, "the question they had for me was only one word, 'Moderna?' And to me, that tells me that there has been some issues, and so, from that perspective, I do regret getting the COVID vaccines."

Rustad has never said he opposes vaccination, but has said he is strongly in favour of "informed choice" and "bodily autonomy." In interviews with NowMedia earlier this year, he said the NDP government had put "ideology" ahead of health in its management of the COVID-19 crisis. 

He also said he was aware of a nurse in Mackenzie who had suffered an allergic reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine and been told by her doctor not to get another one. She was later fired for failing to get another shot, Rustad said.

According to the federal government, there have been 58,712 reports of people experiencing an “adverse event” after a COVID-19 vaccination in Canada.

Only 11,702 of those reports concerned serious problems, however.

As of December last year, more than 105 million COVID-19 shots have been administered, according to Ottawa.

There have been more than a thousand reports of heart problems associated with the shots, with 1,231 incidents of myocarditis and pericarditis (heart inflammation). The first version of the Moderna vaccine was listed in 465 of those reports.

Heart attacks were much rarer, with 160 reports, while cardiac failures (106) and cardiac arrests (63) were even less common.

Overall, heart problems were the most common serious problem associated with the COVID-19 vaccines.

“In the majority of cases, symptoms of myocarditis or pericarditis resolve quickly after seeking medical care,” Health Canada explains on its website.

The department adds, however, that people should seek immediate medical help if they experience chest pain, an irregular heartbeat or shortness of breath.

Read more about COVID-19 vaccines here.