Yesterday, Donald Trump’s CDC changed their website formerly rebuking the dangerous, widely debunked claim that vaccines cause autism, now claiming that studies “have not ruled out the possibility” that vaccines cause autism.
During Health & Human Services Secretary RFK Jr.’s confirmation process, he gave clear assurances to Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) that he and his team would trust the science – but he immediately walked it all back the minute he got confirmed to lead HHS, ramping up his efforts to fuel disinformation and conspiracy theories about vaccines. RFK Jr. attempted to appease Senator Cassidy this time by keeping up a single header on the website entitled, “vaccines do not cause autism*,” but in keeping with his history of breaking these dispassionate, superficial promises, he added an asterisk noting that the header remains only to appease the Senator, not for informational purposes.
This change marks the boldest step yet by Trump and RFK Jr. to push their extreme, anti-vaccine agenda. By rejecting the science and turning to unfounded conspiracy theories – even as long-eradicated diseases like Measles come roaring back across the country – they are completely undermining public trust in the CDC and other critical public health institutions that everyone from experienced medical professionals to first-time parents rely on for accurate, science-backed information.
RFK Jr.’s Lies Don’t Change The Facts: Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism.
More Than A Dozen Studies Show That Vaccination Is Not Associated with Autism. As Stat reported during RFK Jr.’s confirmation hearing: “There are more than a dozen studies showing that vaccination is not associated with autism, including studies specifically focused on the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine; studies focused on the mercury-containing ingredient thimerosal; and studies focused on the question of whether getting too many vaccines results in a higher risk of autism. All of them show that the shots do not increase rates of autism.”
BROKEN PROMISES: RFK Jr. & His CDC Crony Assured Senators They Would Not Change Information on Vaccine Recommendations Without Scientific Proof
RFK Jr. Assured Senator Cassidy The CDC Will Not Remove Statements On Government Website Debunking Lies About Vaccines and Autism. During Kennedy’s confirmation hearing, Senator Bill Cassidy said, “If confirmed, he will maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices without changes. CDC will not remove statements on their website pointing out that vaccines do not cause autism.”
CDC Director Jim O’Neill Promised He Supported Existing CDC Vaccine Recommendations During His Confirmation Hearings. During his Senate confirmation hearing, CDC Director Jim O’Neill said that he supported the current CDC recommendations for vaccines, which made no mention of autism.
During His Confirmation Hearing, RFK Jr. Assured Senator Murkowski He Would Base Vaccine Recommendations On Data-Driven, Evidence-Based, And Medically Sound Research. After Kennedy’s confirmation, Senator Lisa Murkowski said RFK Jr. “made numerous commitments to me and my colleagues,” including a commitment “to base vaccine recommendations on data-driven, evidence-based, and medically sound research.”
RFK Jr. Committed To Basing CDC Recommendations On Peer-Reviewed, Consensus-Based, Widely Accepted Science. During Kennedy’s confirmation hearings, Senator Cassidy asked, “Do you commit that you will revise any CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] recommendations only based on peer review, consensus-based, widely accepted science? In other words, not personal beliefs or the beliefs of any single person that you or your department may identify?” Kennedy replied, “Absolutely senator. I’m not going to go into HHS and impose my preordained opinions on anybody. … I’m going to empower the scientists at HHS to do their job and make sure that we have good science that’s evidence based, that’s replicated.”