CDC Vaccine Report Highlights Study Flaws: Scientist Questions Authorship | US News

A report prepared for a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory committee meeting on Thursday concerning the use of the preservative thimerosal in vaccines contains a citation to a study that doesn’t exist, according to the scientist named as the author of the study. The report, titled Thimerosal as a Vaccine Preservative, was authored by Lyn Redwood, an anti-vaccine activist and former leader of the Children’s Health Defense group. She references a 2008 study in the journal Neurotoxicology, co-authored by UC Davis professor emeritus Robert Berman, which Berman denies involvement with. Berman clarifies that he co-authored a differently concluded study in Toxicological Sciences, expressing discontent with the misrepresentation. This revelation about Redwood’s presentation comes amid controversy, following the recent dismissal of all 17 previous members of the CDC’s advisory panel by US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, known for his anti-vaccine stance. Kennedy replaced them with eight new members, half of whom oppose vaccines. The summary of Redwood’s presentation advocates for excluding thimerosal-containing vaccines from pregnant women, infants, and children, a claim not supported by a separate CDC report release. That report concludes there’s no evidence linking thimerosal-containing vaccines to autism or neurodevelopmental disorders, contrary to Kennedy’s assertions. Lawmakers Bill Cassidy and Patty Murray have requested

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/24/cdc-vaccine-presentation-autism