Robert Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, has signed a recommendation to remove thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative, from flu vaccine shots. This information comes to us from a report in The Wall Street Journal.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, recently reconstituted by Secretary Kennedy, voted last month to recommend the removal of thimerosal from flu shots. Thimerosal has been used to prevent microbial growth in multi-dose vaccine vials.
According to reliable sources, Kennedy stated, “Injecting any amount of mercury into children when safe, mercury-free alternatives exist defies common sense and public health responsibility.”
Thimerosal was removed from most childhood vaccines in 2001 as a precautionary measure. The Food and Drug Administration reports that three flu vaccines for adults currently contain thimerosal.
The Centers for Disease Control, an agency under HHS oversight, maintains on its website that “a robust body of peer-reviewed scientific studies conducted in the U.S. and other countries support the safety of thimerosal-containing vaccines.” The CDC also states that concerns linking thimerosal to autism are not supported by data, as autism rates continued to increase even after its removal from most childhood vaccines.
The facts, as we now know them, raise important questions about vaccine safety, public health policy, and the role of scientific consensus in decision-making. As this situation develops, it will be crucial to monitor the responses from the medical community and public health experts.
