CDC website altered to reflect RFK Jr’s belief in link between vaccines and autism | Trump administration
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website has been modified to reflect the belief of Robert F Kennedy Jr, the US Secretary of Health and Human Services, that there is a link between vaccines and autism, a view categorically contradicted by experts and scientifically validated studies.
Public health and autism experts have strongly condemned the change to the CDC’s “vaccine safety” webpage, after it was changed to read: “The statement ‘Vaccines do not cause autism’ is not an evidence-based claim.”
He adds clearly: “Studies supporting a link have been ignored by health authorities. »
The scale of the change was further underlined by an asterisk placed below a pre-existing statement, saying “vaccines do not cause autism.”
A footnote explanation says the statement was not removed “due to an agreement with the Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions that it would remain on the CDC website.”
That explanation referred to Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, a physician, who initially opposed Kennedy’s nomination for health secretary but later voted for his confirmation on the grounds that statements about vaccines not causing autism would remain on the CDC site.
The new page does not cite any new research. It simply stated: “HHS [health and human services] launched a comprehensive assessment of the causes of autism, including investigations into plausible biological mechanisms and potential causal links.
The changes appear to be the latest example of Kennedy’s determination to impose his beliefs on the vast Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the CDC. They also sparked severe backlash from scientists and advocates, with former and current CDC staff saying the updated page had not gone through the normal scientific clearance process.
“I spoke with several CDC scientists yesterday and none were aware of this change in content,” Debra Houry, one of the top CDC officials who resigned in August, told the AP.
“When scientists are excluded from scientific journals, inaccurate and ideological information results.”
The move was also condemned by the Autism Science Foundation, an organization that initially cautiously greeted Kennedy’s stated mission to investigate the causes of autism — a disorder that can manifest as speech difficulties and repetitive behaviors — after his confirmation.
“We are dismayed to see that content on the CDC’s ‘Autism and Vaccines’ webpage has been altered and distorted, and is now filled with anti-vaccine rhetoric and outright lies about vaccines and autism,” the foundation said in a statement.
A previous version of the page stated that “studies have shown that there is no link between receiving vaccines and the development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). No link has been found between vaccine ingredients and ASD.”
Broad scientific consensus and decades of studies have firmly concluded that there is no link between vaccines and autism.
“The conclusion is clear and unambiguous,” Dr. Susan Kressly, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said Thursday.
“We call on the CDC to stop wasting government resources to amplify false claims that sow doubt about one of the best tools we have to keep children healthy and thriving: routine immunizations. »
The CDC has so far echoed the lack of connection in promoting vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration. A number of former CDC officials have said that what the CDC publishes on certain topics — including vaccine safety — is no longer reliable.
Dr. Daniel Jernigan, who also resigned from the agency in August, told reporters that Kennedy appears to be “moving from evidence-based decision-making to evidence-based decision-making.”
In addition to linking vaccines to autism, Kennedy subscribed to the belief that the condition could be caused by pregnant women taking Tylenol, a suspicion vehemently pushed by Donald Trump, who urged pregnant women to avoid taking the over-the-counter medication.
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