RFK Jr. Hires Autism Skeptic To Look Into CDC Autism Data

Key TakeawaysA contractor and well-known vaccine skeptic at HHS is reviewing old CDC vaccine safety dataThe effort is part of RFK Jr.’s larger effort to explore the causes of autismExperts say the vaccine-autism link has already been debunked.THURSDAY, June 12, 2025 (HealthDay News) — A longtime vaccine critic hired by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is reviewing safety data in an effort to revisit debunked claims that vaccines may cause autism.Orthopedic surgeon Dr. David Geier, a well-known antivaccine activist, hopes to uncover proof that health officials hid data linking vaccines to autism, The Wall Street Journal reported.His work appears to be separate from a U.S. Health and Human Services' look at rising autism rates in the U.S. Results of that work are expected this fall.Geier, meanwhile, is trying to gain access to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) database that includes vaccine safety information from millions of patients, according to multiple sources.He had access to the CDC’s Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD) in the early 2000s, but officials removed him twice for allegedly misusing the information. It’s unclear if he has regained access.In a statement, an HHS spokesperson said, “This scientific work will take a fresh look at all data including old data.” It added that “HHS will follow the science — wherever it leads.”But some public health leaders are concerned.“He has no record in the scientific community of doing valid work,” said Dr. Walter Orenstein, a former CDC immunization director.Geier and his late father, geneticist Mark Geier, spent decades promoting the idea that vaccines are linked to autism. They also created a now-rejected treatment involving a hormone-blocking drug. It led to revocation of the elder Geier’s medical license and disciplinary action for David Geier for practicing medicine without a license.The two had access to the CDC database in 2004 and 2006. Each time, the CDC determined they had misrepresented how they planned to use the data and kicked them out, The Wall Street Journal reported.At a 2015 conference, Geier spoke about it this way: “They think that [the vaccine's link to autism has] been completely debunked and the science that we’re doing is no good,” he said.The VSD includes data from a dozen large healthcare networks. Each health system stores its own information, and sharing full access has raised concerns about privacy among researchers.Kennedy, a longtime critic of vaccine mandates, said last month that Geier would not lead autism research but would look into whether CDC data was missing or hidden.“There has been a lot of monkey business with the VSD,” Kennedy previously told lawmakers.In a 2005 article for Rolling Stone that was later retracted, Kennedy claimed government officials had buried data showing a link between vaccines and autism, The Wall Street Journal said.He pointed to a 2000 CDC conference that discussed early findings from a study on thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative once used in vaccines.Early data from that study raised questions but later showed no link between thimerosal and autism.Thimerosal was removed from most vaccines in 2001 as a safety precaution. The final findings were published in 2003.Kennedy has said his agency will explore possible causes of autism and plans to release findings by September. The CDC estimates that 1 in 31 8-year-olds nationwide had autism in 2022.Scientists say the rise may owe to several factors, including better diagnosis, older parents and genetics, The Wall Street Journal said.The National Institutes of Health (NIH) plans to award grants to study other potential factors, such as environmental toxins and diet. NIH employees were recently asked to help Geier, too.Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine nonprofit Kennedy once led, is holding an online event this week to mark what it calls the “autism cover-up.”Kennedy was originally listed as a speaker, but his name has been removed.More informationThe U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on autism and vaccines.SOURCE: The Wall Street Journal, June 5, 2025.What This Means For YouStudies show vaccines are safe and don't cause autism. But some people are reopening old debates..Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

RFK Jr. Hires Autism Skeptic To Look Into CDC Autism Data

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