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CDC Changes Webpage To Say Vaccines May Cause Autism, Revising Prior Language (msn.com) 317

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webpage that previously made the case that vaccines don't cause autism now says they might. WSJ: The contents of the webpage came up during Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Senate confirmation process. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R., La.) in February said Kennedy had assured him that, if he was confirmed, the CDC would "not remove statements on their website pointing out that vaccines do not cause autism."

The revised webpage says: "The claim 'vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism. Studies supporting a link have been ignored by health authorities." The new text posted Wednesday also notes that the Department of Health and Human Services has launched "a comprehensive assessment" to probe the causes of autism.

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CDC Changes Webpage To Say Vaccines May Cause Autism, Revising Prior Language

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  • Sad (Score:5, Insightful)

    by RobinH ( 124750 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:39PM (#65807747) Homepage
    While I count myself among the tribe of people who think we should govern ourselves based on evidence-based logic and reason, I have to admit, my tribe is a rather small minority. If the majority of the people in a democracy will not buy into an idea simply because you've provided a sound and well-reasoned argument, then we're going to have to fall back on practical lessons. You'd think measles coming back would be a pretty good object lesson, but apparently not.
    • by RobinH ( 124750 )
      What's funny is that the CDC still publishes measles data [cdc.gov] but I wonder how long that will continue.
    • Re:Sad (Score:5, Informative)

      by edi_guy ( 2225738 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @04:10PM (#65807851)

      Watching Ken Burn's The American Revolution series. Typically high quality documentary...his format never gets old for me.

      One of the themes that struck home was around how the 'Founding Fathers' recognized a particular requirement as they began inventing this bottom-up government, where the mass of citizens wielded the power versus a king, military, or other un-elected ruler.

      [paraphrasing] " A Republican democracy underscores the need for a populace that is educated and engaged to uphold the principles of self-governance and rule of law. "

      Being educated as a virtue, as an aspiration, even a patriotic duty seems quaint in 2025. And being meaningfully politically engaged has been replaced by social media "engagement".

      • by rossdee ( 243626 )

        " A Republican democracy underscores the need for a populace that is educated and engaged to uphold the principles of self-governance and rule of law. "

        I think the word Republican in the above should be spelled with a small r .

        • by ceoyoyo ( 59147 )

          It's also unnecessary. The most common alternative to a republic is a constitutional monarchy, and the presence of a figurehead monarch doesn't make a democracy much more resiliant against determined stupidity.

    • by dgatwood ( 11270 )

      While I count myself among the tribe of people who think we should govern ourselves based on evidence-based logic and reason, I have to admit, my tribe is a rather small minority.

      Unfortunately, evidence-based medicine has become a code word for "treat everyone with the same illness identically even when the data doesn't support doing so. That's how I ended up fighting a c. diff. infection. I was hospitalized for a related condition, and the first day of antibiotics put me at no fever, but after a day, I got a fever again, and I asked if the antibiotic had changed, and they said no, but maybe the ER gave me something different. They checked, and determined that yes, I had been on

      • So I'm all for evidence-based medicine as a starting point, but when you realize it isn't behaving normally, you should adjust accordingly.

        The thing about adopting evidence-based policy is that you also need to review and if necessary change policy when more evidence becomes available. The kind of situation you're describing would surely qualify.

        • Re: (Score:2, Flamebait)

          by dgatwood ( 11270 )

          So I'm all for evidence-based medicine as a starting point, but when you realize it isn't behaving normally, you should adjust accordingly.

          The thing about adopting evidence-based policy is that you also need to review and if necessary change policy when more evidence becomes available. The kind of situation you're describing would surely qualify.

          They did review and change the policy. Just too late to do any good. The point is that evidence-based medicine has to be treated as a starting point for diagnosis and treatment decisions, not a rigid decision tree.

          Of course, none of that makes the CDC's new claims that "vaccines don't cause autism" isn't an evidence-based statement any less absurd. You can't ever realistically prove definitively that X cannot cause Y, because that would require knowing that there exists no combination of recognizable hum

      • Your shaggy dog here is a bit of a straw man. The evidence was that the treatment was not working. Therefore your characterization is improper and you are instead describing laziness, stubbornness or bureaucracy, regardless of what label you (think they) applied.

    • by sjames ( 1099 )

      At this rate, I wonder if the only remaining solution is Darwinian (which they also don't believe in). Hopefully some of the unfortunate children of anti-vaxers will learn the truth and get their doctor to give them the shot anyway (but I'm guessing MAGA will move to make the punishment for that worse than for murder).

      • Re:Sad (Score:4, Informative)

        by dryeo ( 100693 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @09:49PM (#65808761)

        The problem is that even the measles vaccine is only 97% effective after 2 doses, which means 3% of vaccinated people will still get measles if it is circulating. That's like 10 million Americans.

        • Re:Sad (Score:4, Informative)

          by whit3 ( 318913 ) on Friday November 21, 2025 @03:30AM (#65809113)
          The '3%' failure rate is quite a success in preventing an epidemic. The epidemic
          must GROW its infected base by more persons, as old cases return to
          uninfected life-as-usual. That 97% inoculated-and-immune sea of people are
          the potential next victims that NEVER contract and pass on the disease to others,

          Similarly, one might prevent forest fires by having 97% of your trees
          fireproofed. It's unlikely a fire will hop to the next tree when
          most of the neighbors don't burn.

          In short, a crowd of folk with 97% immune would result in an
          exponential decay of cases after any initial burst, rather than a rise.
          Health officials certainly are aware of this.

          We all should be aware of this.
  • Intergity (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Voice of satan ( 1553177 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:40PM (#65807751)

    Nobody except the morons who voted for the orange one trust US institutions anyway. Health recommendations will be made at state level (I am in one of the dumb states) whenever possible. Foreign medical professionals will ignore the CDC.

    We are a banana republic.

    • Re:Intergity (Score:5, Informative)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @04:54PM (#65808025) Homepage Journal

      If you need health advice, check some European country's public health agencies. The UK's NHS has a decent website with information on a lot of medical conditions.

    • Nobody except the morons who voted for the orange one trust US institutions anyway.

      It's actually the exact opposite. Most of his voters voted for him specifically because they do not trust US institutions. Remember that Ronald Reagan guy? I voted for him. Mostly liked what he did. The stuff I didn't like, most of his supporters didn't care about. But the worst thing he ever did was give his infamous "Government is the problem" speech. So Orange Man was voted in by a lot of people who specifically wanted him to fire a bunch of government workers and make trust in US insti

  • Also... breathing. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by fahrbot-bot ( 874524 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:44PM (#65807763)

    The revised webpage says: "The claim 'vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism. Studies supporting a link have been ignored by health authorities."

    Breathing can also cause Autism -- and definitely death. Fact: All people with Autism and/or who have died are/were habitual breathers. Claims to the contrary are not evidence based because studies have not ruled out the possibility that breathing can cause Autism and definitely death. ...

    In related news: The inmates are running the asylum.

  • by Murdoch5 ( 1563847 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:44PM (#65807771) Homepage

    The claim 'vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism.

    That statement is fine, we don't know what causes autism, and frankly defining it is almost a joke, since it is a voluntary diagnosis for the most part. However, you could make the same style statement about almost anything, and it wouldn't be entirely wrong.

    The claim 'Oreos do not summon dragons' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that Oreos can't summon dragons.

    It's an idiotic statement, but it's not entirely wrong. Not being wrong, is the not same as being right, and that's the important factor. People will read the autism statement and think the government is finally endorsing the “reality” that vaccine cause autism when they're not. Years ago, during COVID-19, I made a joke that I didn't want to get the COVID-19 vaccine because I didn't want double autism. I'm formally diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, and everyone knew I was joking. My wife, who's a nurse, told one of her clients, who said (paraphrased): “Oh, that's a good point!”, and that woman was serious.

    Where the statement becomes very problematic is the next part:

    Studies supporting a link have been ignored by health authorities.

    What studies? Link the studies, the complete studies because making stupid statements is one thing, but making a falsifiable statement is a violation of public trust. I'm not suggesting that we carefully select some studies, I'm suggesting to post all of them, provide the evidence, if you don't have any, then remove the tail end of the quote. Should the government post careless statements, no, but if you're going to use reverse logic, then make sure you don't provide a falsifiable statement that can be checked.

    • Yes to have these muppets edit the CDC's webpage to cite vague "health authorities" other than... the CDC... and then cite no studies is inherently infuriating.
    • The statement is not fine. It doesn't need to be said. Vaccines also don't not cause shark attacks. Does that need to go on the CDC site as well?

      • Yes, exactly, but your statement is “fine”, it's not false, and it's pointless to make, but it's not a lie. Should that be on the CDC website, no, not at all, but again, it's not a lie so it falls back to “fine”. Keep in mind, “fine” does not mean a great reference point of truth.
      • The statement is not fine. It doesn't need to be said. Vaccines also don't not cause shark attacks. Does that need to go on the CDC site as well?

        I call bullshit. You try giving a vaccination to a shark. I promise you, it will cause an attack.

      • by sjames ( 1099 )

        Naturally vaccines increase your risk of shark attack. Sharks don't attack dead people. By keeping you alive through a disease outbreak, you are left vulnerable to shark attack later in life.

    • I don't think autism is caused by anything. It's not like there is a definitive test that reads positive or negative. It's a collection of symptoms and behaviors. I'd wager that many scientists and inventors were autistic long before vaccines were discovered.

      • 100%, which is why the statement doesn't really mean anything, until you hit that stupid second part.
      • It's thought to be 80% hereditary. It's also thought there are from 2 to 4 distinct types [nbcnews.com] of autism, like how ADHD has 2 types.

        Lots of scientists and inventors throughout history had autistic traits and would probably meet the diagnostic criteria today. The book Neurotribes by Steve Silberman goes into great depth about the history. Good read.

    • That statement is fine, we don't know what causes autism, and frankly defining it is almost a joke, since it is a voluntary diagnosis for the most part. However, you could make the same style statement about almost anything, and it wouldn't be entirely wrong.

      Yes but we DO know that vaccines does not cause autism. Not only have this been studied to death, the brain changes that cause autism happens before you are born so unless you want to present the idea of the existence of time machines then nothing you do after birth can be the cause.

      • We don't know that vaccines don't cause autism, we heavily suspect they don't. You can't prove a negative, in science, you can only show that we have never been able to confirm they can. Let's be clear, we have an insane amount of research and evidence to defend the claim vaccines don't cause autism, but we can't conclusively and absolutely prove they don't. We don't even know what “autism” really is as a stable definition, by evidence it's swung, from someone completely functionally absolute
    • At least what we most commonly refer to as autism. It's genetic.

      There are also some factors in the womb that can cause symptoms we associate with autism specifically things like mild fetal alcohol syndrome. That isn't technically autism though and a actual doctor would know the difference.

      The beauty of autism from a political standpoint is that the term is used so broadly in the public that you can create a lot of fear and confusion that is highly useful politically. And you can get parents to vote
      • I don't think, outside a minimal subset of world-class specialists, could any doctor meaningfully define or recognize autism as a core or related core condition. Why do I say that?

        I have a condition generally referred to as Chronic Neuropathic Pain Disorder, or “Chronic Pain”. I have 15 doctors / specialists, ranging from my GP (family doctor), to a world recognized expert in pain diagnosis and treatment (Dr James). If we exclude Dr James, and you talk to the other 14 doctors / specialists
  • by davidwr ( 791652 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:45PM (#65807773) Homepage Journal

    ... but it won't: The True Believers will believe it is true, and for everyone else, the current administration's credibility on health-related matters died months ago.

  • by rsilvergun ( 571051 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:46PM (#65807781)
    Unless of course they've got some mod points to blow, but seriously fuck you guys.

    Nobody here is so stupid that they don't know this is both wrong and horrific and doesn't understand exactly why that's the case.

    And I know there are a bunch of trump voters here on slashdot

    For the people who weren't just fooled I wonder what you got out of it?

    I know a lot of people are enjoying watching random people with brown skin pulled off the streets and sent to African nations they've never been to.

    Funny thing is every one of them thinks they're Christian.

    There is a belief among the evangelicals that so long as you believe in Christ you are saved and you can basically do anything you want. Faith and not works is what gets you into heaven.

    But you know what, do you really have faith if you voted for trump?

    I mean if your boss gives you an order you go do it because you know damn well your boss is real and so are the consequences of ignoring your boss.

    Jesus gave you all kinds of orders that you ignore. Unlike your boss you don't think Jesus is real do you?

    Basically the evangelicals are closeted atheists. It's just an identity they put on. Something to excuse some of their bad opinions. The Bible is a collection of disjointed texts and books and letters to various denominations so it's easy to find a reason to do just about anything you want to do.

    But eventually reality is going to come calling for you. We're going to take away your social security and your Medicare. After that you'll lose your house when you mortgage it to pay for your bills. I wonder who you will blame then and I wonder which passages of the Bible you will use to do it...

    Meanwhile I have the entire Republican party telling me that fucking 15-year-old girls doesn't make you a pedophile. What a fucking world we're in.
    • Being religious already means you;'re easily enough to fool with fairy tales. Now try not to hurl realising 85% of people adhere to one religion/cult or another.

      Btw, Gervais had a point, why is there are term for not believing in a fantasy like an almighty god, but not one for not believing fairy tales or fantasy fiction or the like? I don't feel like im atheist, I feel like I'm a person with reasoning capability, knowing fantasy from reality (I'd never call myself normal in the first place :-p ).

    • Fox News and GOP have spent 30 years telling US people, they are victims, the government is wrong and billionaires will save them. While one should definitely distrust the agents in the 'shadows', these people don't trust the government they see everyday. A second element is, their selfishness is righteous, their faith is righteous (You are correct: No good deeds required.), their distrust is righteous. A third element, their selfishness demands the world owes them: It owes them white racism, it owes t
    • by HiThere ( 15173 )

      Be careful. It has not been absolutely proven that vaccines never cause XXX. It probably can't be. It's just that there is no valid evidence that vaccines do cause autism. (At least that I know of.)

  • Citation required (Score:5, Insightful)

    by OrangeTide ( 124937 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:48PM (#65807785) Homepage Journal

    Make whatever claim you want. But if it's not supported by evidence then you're just flapping your gums.

    The conspiracy theorist in me thinks there is a faction that wants to intentionally erode the public's trust in government services. To dismantle a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. And replace it with a very different sort of government; one that eschews pluralism, reserves individual liberty to those with power(money), and establishes a rigid hierarchy with a unitary executive at the top.

    • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

      by isomer1 ( 749303 )

      The conspiracy theorist in me thinks there is a faction that wants to intentionally erode the public's trust in government services.

      That's not a conspiracy - it's quite genuinely the conservative modus operandi for nearly all public services. That is precisely what they've done with the postal service, education, financial oversight, etc. And they haven't made it a secret, you can just watch the videos and read the statements made by organizations like the Heritage Foundation and others.

    • You're just starting to acknowledge the possibility?

      • No, but 30 years ago people thought I was being paranoid, a crank, or just being difficult (troll, contrarian, etc)

  • Sigh... fine. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Petersko ( 564140 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:48PM (#65807787)

    Those of us not in the US can just pull up a chair and watch it burn down. I'm buying popcorn. They're opting out of health and education, which underpin the future of everything. The future is not theirs - they are steadfastly committed to near irrelevance in a couple of decades. I spent the last decade feeling concern for the citizens of the US, but I'm out of empathy.

    "This isn't who we are!" Sorry, that rings hollow now. It is, in fact, who you are.

    • I get what you're saying, but it's easy for folks outside of the US to forget how slim Trump's margin of victory was. Recent polls show close to 60% of voters disapprove of his presidency.

      It's mind boggling how low the US has sunk, but don't jump to the conclusion that this administration reflects the values of a majority of the populace.

      • I get what you're saying, but it's easy for folks outside of the US to forget how slim Trump's margin of victory was.

        Actually - The fact that anything more than a fringe minority would support such a person is the issue.

        After WWII, there was a lot of ink spilt trying to examine the psyche of the German population, in order to understand what could cause a people to turn en masse in this way. The conclusions were often that there was in fact nothing special about the Germans. This could happen anywhere. But countries like the UK and the US didn't really take this to heart. There was a core belief that the rule abiding Germ

    • Are going to make it back over the Europe right? Also eventually we're going to need to invade your countries in order to loot them and fill our coffers because that's what failing empires do and our empire is very much on the skids.

      Now would be a good time for the rest of the world to stage and intervention and maybe try to stop Russia from getting Trump a third term as president.

      The problem is you're ruling class is hoping that if America falls they can't get their currency in as the de facto worl
    • by linatux ( 63153 )

      Perhaps they are opting out of poison and indoctrination?

      I've always been glad to not live in the US - Trumps version or anyone elses.

  • Andrew Wakefield (Score:5, Informative)

    by Retired Chemist ( 5039029 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:50PM (#65807789)
    who is responsible for starting this urban legend, is a known fraudster. He has lost his medical license (in England where he lives) and his scientific publications have been withdrawn as frauds. There is no credible evidence of any kind for these claims.
  • What if I take Tylenol after my vaccine to soothe the pain? Is that ok?

    Also maybe we should start working in earnest on learning the science behind dementia. Seems like there is a cluster in the Washington DC area.

    • by fjo3 ( 1399739 )

      What if I take Tylenol after my vaccine to soothe the pain? Is that ok?

      Also maybe we should start working in earnest on learning the science behind dementia. Seems like there is a cluster in the Washington DC area.

      Only if you're not pregnant!

  • Wait, I thought Tylenol caused autism. Is there Tylenol in the vaccines? What's going on? LOL
  • by MpVpRb ( 1423381 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @03:58PM (#65807811)

    Republicans continue their war on science

  • by battingly ( 5065477 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @04:00PM (#65807817)

    Trump goal here is to turn government institutions into cess pools that nobody trusts. Kennedy is a useful idiot for this purpose. The end game is to burn down the entire federal government.

    • by 93 Escort Wagon ( 326346 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @04:38PM (#65807947)

      You're wrong... in thinking Trump is the actual boss. In truth, Trump is basically just another "useful idiot", for the billionaires above him - some of whom serve on his cabinet.

      • by evanh ( 627108 )

        The billionaires are to some extent a tool as well. Or more specifically, they choose to align. We need to look at the politics plain and simple. And to get visibility on that, you need to look at the bundled law changes. One class in particular stands out - the Israel exceptions on crimes.

        It's a little like how the President can't be lawfully wrong about anything now. Trump could order an assassination of the opposition leader and it's legal as long as it's done as the President. He even gets to pard

  • This is a great way to cull the morons out of the population, and best of all it will be self selecting.

    Next will come the dunking chairs for witch craft testing. If you drown you are innocent and have gone upstairs, if you don't drown you are put to death for being a witch.
    • This is a great way to cull the morons out of the population, and best of all it will be self selecting.

      Yes that's basically what needs to happen at this point: REMOVE ALL WARNING LABELS [youtube.com].

    • The problem is that the people most harmed by this aren't the morons themselves, but their kids, who have no say in the matter. Sure, in an evolutionary sense, eliminating the children does curtail their influence on the gene pool (depending on how much of their idiocy is heritable), but I'd really prefer it if they took themselves out of the gene pool and let their kids learn from that example.
  • Trump and RFK told us they were gonna announce the cause of autism "in September"... what's the hold-up? Is it listed in the Epstein Files?

  • The claim 'vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism.

    While I think that the claim is plausible, it does require proof which I have not seen. There is no reverse obligation to prove the negative.

  • If you think avoiding vaccines for you and your children is in your best interest then stay the hell away from the rest of us. You'll soon have plaque colonies that will welcome you with open sores.

  • What a Horrible Joke (Score:5, Informative)

    by Disco Ninja ( 7135795 ) on Thursday November 20, 2025 @05:09PM (#65808095)
    There have only been two studies that concluded there was a link with autism and MMR vaccines which have both been retracted after being found to be critically flawed. There have been numerous studies concluding there is no link between MMR vaccines and Autism since children that had MMR vaccines and those who did not have the same prevalence of autism. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a complete nut bar who is completely unqualified for any role in government much less being the secretary of health. https://www.chop.edu/vaccine-e... [chop.edu]
    • Kennedy somehow in charge of a country's health direction is the last thing I would have imagined. But here we are. Bizzaro world.

  • ...I want a statement that autism is created by the Flying Spaghetti Monster. For reasons only He understands, He sometimes reaches out with his noodley appendage and gives kids autism.

    Is that true? We don't know, we haven't rigorously investigated it, have we now? Since there's exactly as much evidence to support the FSM as vaccines causing autism, the CDC has a duty to mention both possibilities.

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