Exclusive-US CDC plans study into vaccines and autism, sources say

By Dan Levine and Leah Douglas

-The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is planning a large study into potential connections between vaccines and autism, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, despite extensive scientific research that has disproven or failed to find evidence of such links.

It is unclear whether U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who has long promoted anti-vaccine views, is involved in the planned CDC study or how it would be carried out. The CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services were not immediately available for comment.

The CDC's move comes amid one of the largest measles outbreaks the U.S. has seen in the past decade, with more than 200 cases and two deaths in Texas and New Mexico. The outbreak has been fueled by declining vaccination rates in parts of the United States where parents have been falsely persuaded that such shots do more harm than good.

Kennedy, whose role includes authority over the CDC, has long sowed doubt over the safety of the combined vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR). In a cabinet meeting last week, Kennedy initially downplayed news that a school-aged child had died of measles in Texas, the first such death in a decade, calling such outbreaks ordinary and failing to mention the role of vaccination to prevent measles.

Over the weekend, Kennedy published an opinion piece on Fox News that promoted the role of vaccination, but also told parents vaccination was a personal choice and urged them to consult with their physician.

Kennedy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

President Donald Trump's nominee for CDC director, Dr. Dave Weldon, is set for a U.S. Senate committee hearing next week. Some senators have expressed concerns over Weldon's views on vaccines. Weldon declined to comment.

Dr. Wilbur Chen, a professor at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and former member of the CDC's vaccine advisory panel, said the existence of such a study, conducted by the federal government, is itself enough to raise doubts about vaccines among some in the general public.

"It sends the signal that there is something there that is worth investigating, so that means there must be something going on between vaccines and autism," Chen said.

Autism diagnoses in the United States have increased significantly since 2000, intensifying public concern.

Many researchers attribute the rise in diagnoses to more widespread screening and the inclusion of a broader range of behaviors to describe the condition. But some public figures have popularized the idea that vaccines are to blame, an idea stemming from a since-debunked study from British researcher Andrew Wakefield in the late 1990s that connected a rise in autism diagnoses with widespread use of the MMR shot.

The causes of autism are unclear. No rigorous studies have found links between autism and vaccines or medications, or their components such as thimerosal or formaldehyde.

There is widespread speculation among scientists that its neurological characteristics may develop in utero, when the fetal brain is being wired. Studies have linked autism to maternal factors in pregnancy, and some research suggests a link to birth complications and timing.

Trump, in an address to Congress this week, cited the rise in autism among children.

"So, we're going to find out what it is, and there’s nobody better than Bobby and all of the people that are working with you,” Trump said, referring to Kennedy.

The White House had no immediate comment on the planned CDC study.

Kennedy’s anti-vaccine views have drawn concern among some Republicans. During Kennedy’s confirmation hearing Senator Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican and physician, suggested that the nominee disavow any links between vaccines and autism.

Kennedy denied that he was anti-vaccine, but did not acknowledge that such a link had been debunked.

This week Cassidy questioned Trump’s nominee to lead the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, over his stance on investigating a potential link between autism and childhood vaccinations.

"I don't generally believe there is a link, based on my reading of the literature," Bhattacharya said. "But we do have a sharp rise in autism rates, and I don't think any scientist really knows the cause of it. I would support a broad scientific agenda based on data to get an answer to that."

(Reporting by Dan Levine in San Francisco and Leah Douglas in Washington; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Nia Williams)