A vaccine panel appointed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. voted against recommending influenza vaccinations containing the preservative thimerosal, an agent that Kennedy himself and many anti-vaccination activists have long advocated against.
The recommendation, which is yet to be adopted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, advises children, pregnant women and adults not to get any vaccinations containing the preservative. Five members of the panel voted in favor of this outcome, reported POLITICO.
Due to the fact that there is actively no director of the CDC, the decision of whether or not to endorse the recommendation before it can become official is to be made by Kennedy himself.
“The risk from influenza is so much greater than the nonexistent, as far as we know, risk from thimerosal,” said Dr. Cody Meissner, the only panel member who voted no. “I would hate for a person not to receive the influenza vaccine because the only available preparation is with thimerosal.”
Former president of the anti-vaccine group Children’s Health Defense, Lyn Redwood, provided a presentation against thimerosal, arguing that it should be removed from products due to concerns regarding safety of use, before the panel voted on the recommendation.
The CHD was founded by Kennedy himself. Redwood, who identified herself as a “private citizen”, had been hired by Kennedy for a position in the CDC’s vaccine safety office.
According to the CDC website, “no evidence of harm caused by the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines, except for minor reactions like redness and swelling at the injection site.”
“Thimerosal use in medical products has a record of being very safe,” it continues. “The most common side-effects of thimerosal in vaccines are minor reactions like redness and swelling at the injection site. Although rare, some people may be allergic to thimerosal.”
Originally published on Latin Times
