Kennedy Orders Broad Vaccine Inquiry Across U.S. Health Agencies as White House Pushes Public Silence Before November
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 11
Kennedy Orders Broad Vaccine Inquiry Across U.S. Health Agencies as White House Pushes Public Silence Before November
7 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 11
A cross-agency effort led by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is directing federal scientists and data contractors to probe whether vaccines contribute to chronic disease, according to six people familiar with the work.
The inquiry revives Kennedy’s long-promoted claims about links to autism, asthma, allergies and other neurological or autoimmune disorders, including renewed scrutiny of thimerosal in some flu shots.
Martin Kulldorff, now the Health Department’s chief science and data officer, is leading the project with career staff at the FDA and CDC using statistical analysis and millions of patient medical records.
The White House has urged Kennedy to stay largely quiet about vaccines because his views are seen as politically damaging ahead of November’s midterm elections, even as the research remains a top internal priority.
Vaccine scholars and Kennedy critics warn the effort could be used to cherry-pick findings and further weaken confidence in shots that the World Health Organization says saved 154 million lives over the past 50 years.
With official vaccine advice now in dispute, are children being left vulnerable to the return of deadly diseases?
As US policy undermines global vaccination, what is the worldwide cost of reviving discredited health theories?
When a government inquiry challenges established science, how can the public trust its findings are unbiased?