In a controversial move that has sent shockwaves through the medical community, US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has personally instructed the nation's top public health agency to alter its long-held stance on the safety of childhood vaccines.
A Directive to Change Official Stance
Kennedy revealed in an interview with the New York Times that he directed the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to update its position regarding any potential link between vaccines and autism. This intervention marks a significant departure from decades of established scientific consensus.
The CDC's website now carries a revised statement that reads: "The claim 'vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism."
Kennedy's Justification and Scientific Backlash
During his first major print interview, Kennedy acknowledged that large-scale epidemiological studies of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine had found no connection to autism. He also conceded that research into thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative once used in some vaccines, similarly showed no link.
However, Kennedy insisted that gaps remain in vaccine safety science, stating emphatically: "The whole thing about 'vaccines have been tested and there's been this determination made', is just a lie."
This position has been met with immediate condemnation from public health experts, doctors, and scientists worldwide. They have denounced the website modification as precisely the kind of misinformation the CDC has spent decades combating while promoting life-saving childhood immunisations both in the United States and internationally.
Official Rebuttals and Overwhelming Evidence
In a powerful rebuttal, the health department of Los Angeles County - the largest county in the United States - issued a statement declaring that "there is no new evidence to support" the CDC's altered position and that the change is "not accurate."
The department's statement provided compelling context: "For more than 25 years, researchers around the world have rigorously examined whether vaccines cause autism. Over 40 high-quality studies involving more than 5.6 million children have found no link between any routine childhood vaccine and autism."
This conclusion is supported by numerous leading health authorities including:
- The American Academy of Pediatrics
- The California Department of Public Health
- The World Health Organization
- Multiple leading research institutions
The Los Angeles health department further explained that the increase in autism diagnoses reflects improved screening, broader diagnostic criteria, and greater awareness - not any connection to vaccines. They emphasised that perpetuating what they term a "harmful myth" stigmatises members of the autism community and their families.
The controversy places the CDC in an unprecedented position, with its own historical data and recommendations now being questioned by the very government official overseeing the nation's health policy.
