NYC Health Commissioner, Senator Sanders: CDC’s New Rules Don’t Pass Muster – Federal Courts Temporarily Block Revised Childhood Vaccine Schedule
Editor’s note: As others, including Noah Praamsma, have mentioned, Secretary Kennedy has a long and storied history with regard to vaccines. His former organization, Children’s Health Defense, spoke out about the woeful inadequacies of the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System. It’s important to note, however, that all such reporting is strictly voluntary, and doctors aren’t required to use the system or report at all. Many doctors won’t report on behalf of their patients, which is often necessary for those events to be counted. So the FAERS (FDA Adverse Event Reporting System) is nearly as incomplete and unhelpful as the VAERS. While New York’s Senator Gillibrand recently discussed avian flu as being in need of vaccine research due to its potential to spread to humans, those involved in pushing for changes to the factory farming model have described how the avian flu actually spread – in factory farming conditions and in wet markets in the city and elsewhere. Around this time last year, NY Presbyterian gave an update on the measles outbreak in certain areas and how people can protect themselves.
NEW YORK, NY –The NYC Health Department Commissioner Dr. Alister Martin issued the following statement in response to a federal judge in Boston temporarily blocking three major actions taken by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC):
Vaccines are one of the most powerful tools to protect children’s health.
Yesterday’s decision by the federal court to temporarily block the actions of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under the direction of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a public health win.
There is no new data to support the CDC’s attempts to change the longstanding childhood vaccination schedule.
In the last year, the CDC and RFK Jr. have weakened the childhood vaccination schedule and sown distrust in vaccines by promoting inaccurate information and providing confusing guidance that has no basis in science.
The NYC Health Department has held firm. We endorse the American Academy of Pediatrics childhood and adolescent immunization schedules, which recommend all vaccines previously recommended by the CDC based on rigorous review and evidence. Parents and caregivers should speak to their pediatrician if they have questions about vaccination recommendations. Health care providers in New York City should follow AAP.
As the city’s doctor and an emergency room physician, I’ve seen firsthand how vaccines keep people out of the ER. We at the NYC Health Department remain committed to our mission of protecting the health and safety of all New Yorkers.
Sanders Calls for
Senate Hearing to Correct Kennedy’s Dangerous Misinformation Campaign on Autism and Vaccines
WASHINGTON — In the aftermath of Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy’s repeated and dangerous misinformation campaign inaccurately linking vaccines to autism, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) today called on Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.) to hold a hearing to set the record straight on autism research and clarify that vaccines are safe and effective and do not cause autism.
In his letter, Sanders quotes Cassidy about the safety of vaccines: “You have correctly said: ‘I’m a doctor who has seen people die from vaccine-preventable diseases. What parents need to hear right now is vaccines for measles, polio, hepatitis B and other childhood diseases are safe and effective and will not cause autism. Any statement to the contrary is wrong, irresponsible, and actively makes Americans sicker.’ I could not agree more with that assessment. Unfortunately, Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy and many others inside the Trump Administration do not.”
Since assuming office, Secretary Kennedy has waged an unprecedented war on science and vaccines that have saved millions of lives. He has directed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to publish false information on its website suggesting that childhood vaccines cause autism despite the findings of more than 40 scientific studies in seven countries involving over 5.6 million people to the contrary. He has replaced the scientific experts on the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices with vaccine skeptics, including several who have promoted the debunked claim that vaccines cause autism. And most recently, he overhauled the National Institutes of Health (NIH)’s Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC), appointing 21 new non-federal members. Several of these appointees have publicly advanced false claims linking vaccines and autism.
“It is our responsibility to make sure that the American people understand the truth about vaccines and autism based on scientific evidence, not conspiracy theories. Therefore, I would like to work with you to schedule a hearing on this issue as soon as possible,” Sanders continued.
In addition to Sanders, many autism scientists and advocates have also sounded the alarm about Kennedy’s actions, including the Coalition of Autism Scientists, Autism Society of America, Autistic Self-Advocacy Network and the Autism Science Foundation.
Read the letter here.
Banner Image: Child getting vaccinated. Image Credit – CDC
Staten Islander News Service Staff Writer
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[…] Senator Sanders and the New York City Health Commissioner both spoke out against the new proposed childhood vaccination rule modifications that were proposed by the Health and Human Services Secreta…. and the Centers for Disease Control. These new rules were temporarily put on hold by a judge as […]