{"id":15805,"date":"2025-03-27T22:21:22","date_gmt":"2025-03-27T22:21:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/rfk-jr-turns-to-a-discredited-vaccine-researcher-for-autism-study\/"},"modified":"2025-03-27T22:21:22","modified_gmt":"2025-03-27T22:21:22","slug":"rfk-jr-turns-to-a-discredited-vaccine-researcher-for-autism-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/rfk-jr-turns-to-a-discredited-vaccine-researcher-for-autism-study\/","title":{"rendered":"RFK Jr. Turns to a Discredited Vaccine Researcher for Autism Study"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">A steadfast figure in the anti-vaccine movement who has helped shape Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\u2019s thinking on a possible link to autism has joined his department to work on a study examining the long-debunked theory, according to people familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The new analyst, David Geier, has published numerous articles in the medical literature attempting to tie mercury in vaccines to autism. In 2012, state authorities in Maryland found that he had been practicing medicine without a license alongside his father, Mark Geier, who was a doctor at the time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Maryland authorities also suspended Mark Geier\u2019s medical license following claims that he endangered children with autism and exploited their parents, according <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mdcourts.gov\/data\/opinions\/cosa\/2019\/0338s18.pdf\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">to state records<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Federal judges have rejected their research on autism and vaccines as too unreliable to stand up in court.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">David Geier\u2019s new government role has stunned public health experts, who had already expressed concerns about Mr. Kennedy\u2019s decisions to cancel a long-held vaccine meeting and to cut grants focused on understanding vaccine hesitancy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In addition, David Geier\u2019s involvement in government research heightens their fears that vaccine confidence could be further eroded, especially after Mr. Kennedy\u2019s recent <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/25\/health\/measles-kennedy-vitamin-a.html\" title=\"\">embrace of questionable alternative treatments<\/a> for measles during the sprawling outbreak in Texas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cIf we increase vaccine hesitancy and immunization rates go down further, we will see more vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks,\u201d said Dr. Christopher Beyrer, director of the Duke Global Health Institute. \u201cThat\u2019s how it works.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Several experts said that appointing David Geier to work on a study of vaccine safety preordains the outcome \u2014 like having a basketball referee show up in one team\u2019s jersey.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cYou\u2019d think you\u2019d want a fresh eye,\u201d said Edward L. Hunter, a former head of the Washington office of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThis isn\u2019t a fresh eye. They have already published their results, and spending all this time and money is not going to help anyone. I am quite certain they\u2019ll come to the same conclusion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">An official with Mr. Kennedy\u2019s Department of Health and Human Services declined to comment. Two White House spokesmen did not respond to a request for comment. David Geier did not reply to emails or calls requesting comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mary Holland, chief executive of Children\u2019s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine nonprofit Mr. Kennedy ran until his presidential bid, praised David Geier on its website on Wednesday, describing him as \u201ca brilliant, extremely knowledgeable researcher with deep expertise on mercury.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">(Over the weekend, federal officials <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/22\/health\/cdc-kennedy-vaccine-disinformation.html\" title=\"\">ordered the nonprofit<\/a> to remove a mock C.D.C. web page suggesting a link between vaccines and autism.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">David Geier is listed in the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/directory.psc.gov\/hhsdir\/eeKey.asp?Key=69735&amp;Format=Table\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Department of Health and Human Services directory<\/a> as a \u201csenior data analyst.\u201d News of his role in the agency was initially reported by The Washington Post.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Earlier this month, federal officials <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/07\/health\/vaccines-autism-cdc-rfk-jr.html\" title=\"\">announced plans for a large study<\/a> to re-examine whether there was a connection between vaccines and autism. Mr. Trump has voiced support for H.H.S. officials who wanted to revisit the issue, citing increases in autism diagnoses in children over the decades.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">About 1 in 36 children have an autism diagnosis, according to C.D.C. data collected in 11 states, compared with 1 in 150 children in 2000.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\"><a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/23\/health\/what-causes-autism.html\" title=\"\">Many scientists believe<\/a> the rise is due in part to increased awareness of the disorder and changes in how it is diagnosed by medical professionals, though genetic and environmental factors could be playing a role as well.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Senate confirmed Mr. Kennedy largely because he won over the chairman of the Senate health committee, Bill Cassidy, Republican of Louisiana, who is a medical doctor and strong proponent of childhood vaccines.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-5\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Cassidy has said that further research into any supposed link between vaccines and autism would be a waste of money and a distraction from studies that might shed light on the \u201ctrue reason\u201d for the rise in autism rates.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Thursday, Mr. Cassidy said he wanted confirmation of David Geier\u2019s role, aside from news reports. He mentioned that he had breakfast with Mr. Kennedy on Thursday but said the topic did not come up.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">At one of his confirmation hearings, Mr. Kennedy shot back at Mr. Cassidy, citing a study <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/02\/12\/us\/politics\/rfk-science-vaccines.html\" title=\"\">from an ecosystem of vaccine critics<\/a> that he said proved a connection between vaccines and autism.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">David Geier comes from a similar circle of researchers. Along with his father, he played a formative role in Mr. Kennedy\u2019s thinking.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-6\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Kennedy interviewed David Geier for an <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/drkentshow.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/thimerosalscandalfinal1.pdf\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">essay<\/a> in 2005, \u201cTobacco Science and the Thimerosal Scandal,\u201d in which he accused the C.D.C. of deliberately hiding vaccine data, under chapter headings like \u201cConspiracy\u201d and \u201cThe Cover-Up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Kennedy described the Geiers\u2019 belief that thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative used in some vaccines, was linked to childhood autism. The preservative has since been removed from most childhood vaccines but is still used in some flu shots.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a Rolling Stone article called \u201c<a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/CRECB-2005-pt10\/html\/CRECB-2005-pt10-Pg13935-3.htm\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Deadly Immunity,<\/a>\u201d Mr. Kennedy credited the Geiers with being among the few who had gained access to C.D.C. vaccine data, which he said they used to \u201cdemonstrate a powerful correlation between thimerosal and neurological damage in children.\u201d (The magazine later withdrew the article, but did not elaborate.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Almost a decade later, in Mr. Kennedy\u2019s book, \u201cThimerosal: Let The Science Speak,\u201d he paid homage to the Geiers, mentioning them nearly 250 times. He called them a \u201cfather-and-son team of independent medical researchers\u201d who had \u201cpublished extensively on the topic of thimerosal and its potential link to neurodevelopmental disorders, particularly autism.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Kennedy acknowledged that the two had become \u201clightning rods of controversy in the vaccine safety debate.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-7\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThe Geiers have published no fewer than thirteen epidemiological studies of the associations between Thimerosal and health effects in U.S. populations, employing accepted statistical practices,\u201d Mr. Kennedy wrote in the book.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\"><a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/feeds.megaphone.fm\/healpodcast\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">On a podcast<\/a> in 2022, Mr. Kennedy credited the Geiers\u2019 research for showing that vaccines \u201chad nothing to do with\u201d a decline in infectious diseases over decades. \u201cIt was all an illusion,\u201d Mr. Kennedy said, attributing the decrease to improving sanitation and nutrition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The Geiers\u2019 work has been repeatedly discredited by other scientists and federal court decisions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">An extensive review of the purported link between vaccines and autism in 2004 by the Institute of Medicine, an elite group of doctors and researchers, panned the Geiers\u2019 studies. The review found their work to be marred by flaws \u201cmaking their results uninterpretable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The institute\u2019s report on a connection with the measles shots said: \u201cThe committee concludes that the evidence favor rejection of a causal relationship between M.M.R. vaccine and autism.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-8\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In 2011, the Maryland Medical Board accused David Geier of practicing medicine without a license alongside his father at a Rockville, Md., clinic for children with autism.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-9\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">One mother of a 10-year-old boy with autism balked when David Geier reportedly ordered 24 different blood tests for her son.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">His father, Mark Geier, lost his medical license in 2012. Records in that case indicate that both father and son promoted a theory that thimerosal caused autism.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">State authorities found that the Geiers had offered treatment with puberty-blocking drugs. To some patients, they offered chelation, a procedure to remove heavy metals from the blood, records show. David Geier was assessed a $10,000 fine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Judges have rejected the Geiers\u2019 efforts to serve as experts on vaccine safety in court. Records show that judges challenged the father-son team\u2019s billings for hundreds of thousands of dollars related to services they provided as experts for a specialized vaccine injury court.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-10\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The judges cited David Geier\u2019s lack of qualifications, which include a bachelor\u2019s degree in biology, and raised concerns about his father\u2019s credibility.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Judge George L. Hastings Jr. said in 2016 that David Geier was not qualified to render an expert opinion in a National Vaccine Injury Compensation court case.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Judge Hastings said his report \u201cis neither useful nor relevant, because he is not qualified as an expert concerning the matters he discusses.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a review of two Geier studies this week, Jeffrey S. Morris, director of the division of biostatistics at the University of Pennsylvania, said he found what appeared to be a numerical sleight of hand that made it appear that vaccines caused a spike in autism.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWhen I look at these two studies, they are so fatally flawed that I have serious concerns that any study that they\u2019re going to design is going\u201d to be rigorous enough, he said, \u201cto yield valid results.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-11\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">To Mr. Hunter, formerly of the C.D.C., the decision to spend federal funds on a new study of a debunked theory would come at the cost of a meaningful discovery.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Since he became health secretary, Mr. Kennedy has presided over cutbacks involving research into nearly every aspect of health care and diseases. On Thursday, he <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/27\/us\/politics\/health-department-job-layoffs-rfk-jr.html\" title=\"\">announced a massive reorganization and reduction in the<\/a> work force from 82,000 to 62,000.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cTo me, the big shame is that with budget cuts, we are not ramping up research into what is actually causing autism,\u201d Mr. Hunter said. \u201cAnd if you are worried about vaccine-preventable disease, this is such a clear setback.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Michael Gold<!-- --> contributed reporting from Washington. <!-- -->Alain Delaqu\u00e9ri\u00e8re<!-- --> contributed research. <!-- -->Jeremy Singer-Vine<!-- --> provided data analysis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/03\/27\/health\/rfk-jr-autism-vaccines.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A steadfast figure in the anti-vaccine movement who has helped shape Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\u2019s thinking on a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15806,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[1087,1086,634,945,114,144,915,916,113,624,5043],"class_list":["post-15805","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-2","tag-bill-1957","tag-cassidy","tag-centers-for-disease-control-and-prevention","tag-childrens-health-defense","tag-donald-j","tag-health-and-human-services-department","tag-kennedy","tag-robert-f-jr","tag-trump","tag-vaccination-and-immunization","tag-vaccine-journal"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>RFK Jr. Turns to a Discredited Vaccine Researcher for Autism Study - World News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/rfk-jr-turns-to-a-discredited-vaccine-researcher-for-autism-study\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"RFK Jr. Turns to a Discredited Vaccine Researcher for Autism Study - World News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A steadfast figure in the anti-vaccine movement who has helped shape Health Secretary Robert F. 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