Howard Lutnick, co-chair of the Trump-Vance transition team, recently revived the debunked myth linking vaccines to autism spectrum disorders (ASD). During an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Lutnick veered off topic to discuss the unfounded claims around childhood vaccinations causing autism:
I spent two and a half hours this week with Bobby Kennedy and it was the most extraordinary thing because, let’s face it, we’ve all heard on the news all sorts of snarky comments about him. I said, “So tell me how’s it going to go?” And he said, “Why don’t you just listen to me?” And what he explained was that when he was born, we had three vaccines and autism was one in ten thousand. Now a baby is born with 76 vaccines because in 1986, they waived product liability for vaccines. And here’s the best one, they started paying people at the [National Institutes of Health], right? They pay them a piece of the money from the vaccine companies. Wait a minute, let me finish. And so all of these vaccines came out without product liability. So what happened now is that autism is now 1 in 34. Amazing.
In a previous interview on Fox News, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. reiterated his belief that autism stems from vaccines. Despite these claims, extensive research has found no evidence supporting a link between childhood vaccinations and autism spectrum disorders. While all medical treatments carry some risk of adverse effects, a comprehensive analysis of vaccine safety conducted by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in 2021 found no increased risk for key adverse events following routine vaccinations.
Lutnick highlighted the rise in autism diagnoses, but experts attribute this increase to greater awareness and changes in diagnostic criteria rather than vaccines. This shift in diagnosis has led to concerns about over-diagnosis and the substitution of autism diagnoses for other mental health conditions.
Adding to the anti-vaccine rhetoric, Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance recently expressed skepticism towards vaccines after experiencing side effects following a COVID-19 vaccine shot. However, research indicates that robust immune responses to vaccines lead to greater protection against diseases.
Lutnick’s mention of waived liability for vaccines refers to the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, which established the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program to provide compensation for individuals injured by certain vaccines. The benefits of vaccines, as highlighted by the CDC, include preventing millions of illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths, resulting in significant cost savings.
Former President Donald Trump has shown support for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s views on health and food, signaling alignment with the debunked anti-vax movement. This endorsement raises concerns about the Trump campaign’s stance on vaccination and public health.
