We can’t believe we’re still having this conversation.
It saddens TMR to say that paracetamol was, apparently, just the tip of the iceberg.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has removed its long-held stance that vaccines are not the cause of rising autism rates from its website.
The claim that vaccines do not cause autism is not evidence-based, the site now states, as studies have not definitively ruled out the possibility.
Yes, and research hasn’t specifically ruled out the existence of unicorns either, we just have absolutely no evidence of them.
It’s still possible.
It has been proven that the use of vaccines is not related to the increase in autism, Professor Gary Grohmann, virologist, board member of the Immunisation Coalition and former Director of Immunobiology and WHO ERL at the TGA, told The Medical Republic.
“And very importantly, there is no mechanism of action that vaccines cause autism,” he said.
“People like me don’t care about stupid statements like that, because stupidity at that level is really not worth commenting on.”
But to the general public, a stance like this from the CDC carries weight.
Stating that vaccines cause autism can be refuted, but saying there has been no study proving that they don’t could easily be believed.
“This is misinformation at its best [read: worst] because people outside the knowledge base are going to read that and think it’s true,” he said.
“It’s incredibly irresponsible.
“This is all [Robert F] Kennedy. This is all from his department and his agenda. This is a very good example of somebody with an agenda, without the science, manipulating words.”
The CDC website was quietly edited last night to claim there’s “no evidence” that vaccines don’t cause autism. This is false. But this is damaging, even beyond people’s confidence in vaccines. For the first time in my career, I cannot tell people to trust what the CDC website without hesitation.
— Your Local Epidemiologist (@ylepidemiologist.bsky.social) 21 November 2025 at 04:26
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The new CDC stance will lead to ambiguity, Professor Grohmann said, and further doubt in parents’ minds about the decision to vaccinate their children.
Polio, measles and whooping cough are just some of the preventable diseases we’ve seen a recent resurgence in due to vaccine hesitancy.
The American Academy of Pediatrics president, Dr Susan Kressly, released this statement in response to the changes:
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website has been changed to promote false information suggesting vaccines cause autism.
“Since 1998, independent researchers across seven countries have conducted more than 40 high-quality studies involving over 5.6 million people. The conclusion is clear and unambiguous: There’s no link between vaccines and autism.
“Anyone repeating this harmful myth is misinformed or intentionally trying to mislead parents. We call on the CDC to stop wasting government resources to amplify false claims that sow doubt in one of the best tools we have to keep children healthy and thriving: routine immunisations.
“The American Academy of Pediatrics stands with members of the autism community who have asked for support in stopping this rumour from spreading any further.”
Related
The update on the CDC site highlights the increase in the number of recommended childhood vaccinations since the 1980s, which correlates with the rise in autism prevalence.
While noting that the (yet unknown) cause of autism is likely multi-factorial, it states that “the scientific foundation to rule out one potential contributor entirely has not been established”.
It then cites a 2014 trend analysis that supposedly found vaccine aluminium adjuvants had the highest statistical correlation with autism of any other environmental factor.
It seems the CDC forgot to update the page which states that the amount of aluminium exposure in people who follow the recommended vaccine schedule is low and is also not readily absorbed by the body.
Looking closely at the supplemental materials of the study, the composite dataset actually shows glyphosate and polybrominated diphenyl ethers have higher correlations than aluminium.
There are also unstable correlations that likely reflect coincidences in time-series patterns, not causation. For example, thimerosal shows a complete reversal depending on the dataset used.
In the dataset covering birth years 1970–1997, the correlation with autism prevalence was 0.85. But when a second dataset for birth years 1995–2005 was added to form the composite dataset, the correlation flipped to –0.23.
In the spirit of giving RFK Jr another reason to blame mothers for their child’s autism, it is worth noting that maternal obesity was also trending upwards in line with autism prevalence.
To help stop the spread of misinformation, you can display this patient-facing infographic in your practice.
You can also direct your patients to Sharing Knowledge About Immunisation.
