In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the myth that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread. Examples include measles, COVID, flu, and polio.
A number of posts discussed Trump's support for the discredited notion.
Another leading anti-vaxxer is presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. He has repeatedly compared vaccine mandates to the Holocaust. Rolling Stone and Salon retracted an RFK article linking vaccines to autism. He is part of the "Disinformation Dozen." He helped cause a deadly 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa.
In light of the Trump administration's dishonesty and threats to privacy, plans for an autism registry are most disturbing.
In a Monday council meeting, the head of the National Institute of Health said they are creating a new National Disease Registry for Autism.
But when we reached out to the Department of Health and Human Services Thursday to ask if patients can opt out, they told us they have no plans to create 'an autism registry.'
"We are not creating an autism registry. The real-world data platform will link existing datasets to support research into causes of autism and insights into improved treatment strategies."
That's despite National Institute of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya saying this in a NIH council meeting Monday...
"The platform will accelerate research and create new opportunities for cross agency use of data in real time, health monitoring, developing national Disease registries, including one a new one for autism."
