Truthout is an indispensable resource for activists, movement leaders and workers everywhere. Please make this work possible with a quick donation.

At least three scientific papers that are frequently touted by Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to promote doubts on vaccine safety have been removed, retracted, or placed under additional scrutiny by the journals that originally published them.

According to a report from The Guardian, the studies in question include:

A paper published in 2021 that suggested a link between vaccines and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The paper faces “serious methodological flaws,” the journal that initially published it stated.

A paper from 2020, which alleged that vaccinated children had higher rates of health problems, such as developmental delays and asthma. The paper was flagged with an “expression of concern” by the publisher earlier this year, and is under investigation.

And a paper from 2010, which suggested that boys who received hepatitis B vaccines were more likely to be diagnosed with autism. That paper was retracted entirely.

Kennedy has frequently used these studies to promote his anti-vaccination ideals, citing some of them in a 2023 book in which he dubiously argued that unvaccinated children were healthier than vaccinated children. More recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which Kennedy’s department oversees, cited one of the papers to justify changing language on its website that had previously debunked claims linking vaccines to autism.

Originally, the CDC website had read:

Studies have shown that there is no link between receiving vaccines and developing autism spectrum disorder (ASD). No links have been found between any vaccine ingredients and ASD. Related Story News | Environment & Health RFK Jr. Pursues Federal Government Access to Americans’ Medical Records Millions in federal........

© Truthout