Trump president win impact on healthcare and autism

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I'm not sure if this has been posted elsewhere, but a favourite pet conspiracy theory of Donald Trump has been given the green light to be given multiple millions of dollars of funding from the CDC.

March 7 - 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.

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 RFK. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, 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.
https://www.reu-ers.com/business/health ... 025-03-07/

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is planning to devote research dollars to the debunked myth that vaccines cause autism – legitimizing stigma not only around vaccines, but around autism itself.

Matthew Shallenberger, father to an 11-year-old autistic son in Tennessee, says this myth is harmful because “it treats autism as some dreadful disease to avoid at all costs”.

Parents in the Texas community where an unvaccinated child died of measles last month, have continued to resist vaccines in the name of vague potential harms, including autism.

Shallenberger finds this bewildering: “I would much rather my son be alive, healthy and autistic than dead from a preventable childhood illness. It’s not even a decision, really. There is only one choice for me: vaccinate my kids.”

Parents including Shallenberger are in the odd position of defending their decision to vaccinate – even though there is no evidence of a link between vaccines and autism.

Lynne Peskoe-Yang, a 34-year-old Massachusetts-based journalist with autism, says the myth’s persistence illustrates something disturbing about how the world sees autistic people – that because they are different, they must be contaminated somehow.

“It fits really well into other kinds of beliefs about health that really boil down to morals more than science,” Peskoe-Yang said.

Kate Abarca, a retired occupational therapist in South Carolina, says that learning to understand her son’s autism was immensely rewarding. Caring for him made her a better therapist, and advocating for him helped her overcome her shyness. Now 35, her son Benjamin Beals is beloved in his community. He lives in a semi-independent facility and is known for his karaoke performances.

Abarca realized early that her son’s difficulties stemmed from her own inability to understand his needs. When he was an infant, she says he screamed constantly and would kick and bite her when she was trying to care for him.

“ I came to recognize his actions as self-defense against me providing caregiving that he perceived as an assault,” she said.

Jonathan Knapp, 71, a podcaster in Indiana known by the stage name Johnny Profane, agrees that some of the difficulties associated with autism are more manageable if you understand their cause.

“Any child will start screaming in a supermarket given the right stimuli,” he said. Knapp, along with others contacted for this story, suspects that anti-vaxxers see autism as a combination of exaggerated stereotypes stemming from misunderstood behaviors.

Knapp was diagnosed with autism at 63. While the diagnosis is still stigmatized, Knapp says that understanding why he felt different his whole life has been a blessing.

Emir Lopez, a 32-year-old working in IT in Massachusetts, also sees his autism diagnosis as a gift. Lopez said when he was diagnosed as a child, his parents hid it. He connected the dots himself studying psychology in college. When his mother confirmed he had autism, Lopez realized there actually was “nothing wrong” with him. He was “normal” – just autistic.

Hearing parents fret over vaccines causing autism “just makes me so angry”, says Lopez, adding: “Autistic people, we’re very logical, so that blows my mind even more.” Lopez remembers a particularly upsetting instance when his father’s former girlfriend told him he might not have autism had he not been vaccinated.

Eventually, Lopez became so fed up with the stigma he decided to disclose his autism on social media with the joke “vaccines are just computer updates for me”.

A 37-year-old autistic sound engineer said he finds misinformation so disturbing he loses sleep over it, adding that anti-vaxxers are not “entitled” to “their own set of facts”. He echoed Lopez’s sentiment that this cognitive dissonance can be especially distressing for autistic people: “It saps your energy away. You lose your appetite and your body temperature changes. It’s a drastically physical thing.”.

Knapp, too, said he’s lost days replaying social media conversations with anti-vaxxers over and over in his head.

While Lopez is troubled by misunderstandings over autism, he says he’s most concerned over declining vaccination rates.

“People need to vaccinate. This is life or death. People are dying. Babies are dying!”

Science Or Censorship? AAP Comes Out Against CDC’s Vaccine-Autism Study

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to hand over multiple sets of vaccine safety data to a discredited researcher with a history of spreading misinformation that vaccines cause autism, according to two sources familiar with the plan. Both learned about the matter during recent meetings at the CDC but were not authorized to speak about it publicly.

David Geier, who shows up in the Department of Health and Human Services’ directory as a “senior data analyst,” will reportedly analyze the data. Geier has repeatedly claimed that vaccines cause autism — a link that’s already been fully debunked.

“If this individual is involved, then it draws into immediate question the validity of any analysis that comes out of this work,” said a former CDC official who was told of the plan before recently leaving the agency.

Dr. Richard Besser, president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and a former acting CDC director, called Geier a “deeply irresponsible choice” to lead this effort as he has “no medical degree and a long history of pushing discredited theories about vaccines and autism.”

“Families affected by autism deserve credible research efforts that explore legitimate potential preventable causes of and treatments for autism,” Besser said in a statement. “They are not helped when our tax dollars and research funds are wasted on rehashing a question that has already been answered.”

Geier’s hiring was first reported Tuesday evening by The Washington Post. It was unclear Wednesday whether the plans had since changed. Neither HHS nor Geier responded to requests for comment.

David Geier and his father, Maryland geneticist Dr. Mark Geier, were a pair of researchers known for their poorly designed and retracted studies using government safety data that have long-fueled widespread misinformation about vaccines.

According to an account in the 2005 book “Evidence of Harm,” then-congressman Dave Weldon — whose nomination for CDC director was abruptly withdrawn two weeks ago — intervened to help the Geiers access the Vaccine Safety Datalink, a CDC-housed dataset containing patient health records. This raw data is available to researchers, but isn’t public because of concerns over privacy, misrepresentation of data, and manpower.

The Geiers claimed at an Institute of Medicine panel in 2004 that the CDC data showed vaccines were linked to autism, a claim that was refuted by scientists at the meeting and in scores of published studies since. At the same IOM meeting, a scientist explained how the Geiers’ findings had failed to factor for age — children with more vaccines only appeared to have higher rates of autism because they were older and had more time to be diagnosed. (Children on average are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder around age 5.)

The Geiers conducted research from a makeshift laboratory in their carpeted wood-paneled suburban Maryland basement; published several studies, many of which were retracted; and promoted an unproven treatment for autism that cost families tens of thousands of dollars and included injections of Lupron, a drug used for prostate cancer and early puberty. In children, it’s only approved for precocious puberty and comes with side effects including bone damage, heart issues and seizures. They diagnosed kids with precocious puberty without proper tests and misled parents into thinking they were signing up for an approved autism therapy. A 2011 Maryland Board of Physicians investigation found that the Geiers violated standards of care.

Mark Geier, who theorized that autism resulted from an interaction between mercury and testosterone, was stripped of his medical license by Maryland regulators in 2012. Maryland regulators also disciplined David Geier for practicing medicine without a license.

In addition to research and running a clinic with his father treating autistic children, David Geier owned and operated a company called MedCon, a consulting firm that helped people with vaccine injury claims get compensation.

On World Autism Awareness Day, we recognize the millions of Americans living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Their proud perseverance in overcoming tremendous hurdles is emblematic of the strength and grit that makes America great. The First Lady and I extend our heartfelt appreciation to the families, friends, and communities aiding Americans with ASD as we empower every citizen to take part in and shape our new golden age.

Autism now affects 1 in 36 children in the United States, a staggering increase from the 1980s, when the disorder was found in only 1 to 4 out of every 10,000 individuals. I created the Make America Healthy Again Commission to investigate and address the root causes of our escalating health crisis, with a focus on childhood disorders like autism. As part of this effort, my Administration is prioritizing gold-standard research and increasing transparency to gain new insights to aid those with ASD.

Under my leadership, our great Nation will be stronger than ever before, with opportunities for all Americans to thrive and prosper. Despite challenges, Americans with ASD have made, and will continue to make outstanding contributions for our country and the world.

Early detection is crucial to improving the quality of life of those with ASD, as timely intervention can significantly improve long-term outcomes. Identifying signs of autism at the onset allows parents and healthcare providers to implement therapies and support strategies which can enhance communication and social skills. Loving parents want the best for their children in educational environments and so do we. By supporting our children and their families, we can help them in overcoming challenges during childhood, the most crucial stage of development.
Together, on World Autism Awareness Day, we declare our unending support and wholehearted respect for Americans living with autism. My Administration will empower them to reach their full potential and realize their American Dream.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 2, 2025, as World Autism Awareness Day. I call upon all Americans to learn more about the signs of autism to improve early diagnosis, understand the challenges faced by individuals with autism, and find ways to support those with autism and their families.

Today, the administration announced its recognition of “World Autism Awareness Day.” This is a step backwards from the previous administration’s recognition of World Autism Acceptance Day. But this change is far from the only way the Trump administration is turning the clock back when it comes to meeting the needs and protecting the rights of autistic people. From science to services and supports, the government is determined to drag us into a past marked by ignorance and institutionalization. Trump’s statement talks about “opportunities for all Americans to thrive and prosper,” but autistic people across the country will pay the price for the administration’s destructive policy decisions.

Today’s announcement claims that the Trump administration is “prioritizing gold standard research.” In fact, the only autism research the administration has platformed is redoing already thoroughly debunked research into autism and vaccines, for which it has hired a known quack. The administration has also notably made cuts to autism research programs that receive federal funding. This includes millions of dollars in cuts to research and programs aimed at improving the lives of already existing autistic people.

The statement also says that the administration is “increasing transparency” around its autism policies and research. This comes after the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has ended HHS’ policy of accepting public comments during the rulemaking process, and amid a communications freeze at HHS that has brought cooperation between the agency and stakeholders to a halt. The only information about any public engagement around the harmful “Make America Healthy Again” commission was an announcement from Children’s Health Defense, an organization that Kennedy founded, that the MAHA commission would be meeting with the public “on the road.” There has been no confirmation from HHS about whether this is true, and there has been no consultation or communication with autistic-led organizations about the harmful autism policies that Secretary Kennedy has put forward.

The announcement says that there has been “a staggering increase” in autism prevalence. But increased diagnosis is nothing to fear. There have been a number of improvements to our understanding of autism in different groups of people, and improvements to insurance access in America since the 1980s. This includes the passing of the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion. More people are getting diagnosed because we are getting better at finding and understanding autism. This is why more Black, Asian and Pacific Islander and Hispanic 8 year olds are being diagnosed than their white peers, for the first time in US history — it’s a reflection of more people getting access to diagnosis.

Today’s announcement says that the administration will “empower [autistic people] to reach their full potential and realize their American Dream.” But autistic people cannot reach our full potential if our access and support needs are not met. The Trump administration threatens our ability to live full lives by making it harder to access Social Security. It is trying to take away lifesaving services by cutting Medicaid and its waiver programs to pay for tax cuts for billionaires. It threatens our inclusion in schools by trying to destroy the Department of Education. And it harms our inclusion in our communities by dismantling the Administration for Community Living.

While short, the statement notably only speaks to people who “[aid] Americans with ASD” and focuses only on children. It completely fails to even acknowledge the existence of autistic adults. This might be because we are aware of how much harm the administration is doing to our community. Or perhaps this statement is also a relic of a time when we were not invited to advocate for ourselves.

Too often, the administration clings to obsolete ideas about our community. Even when it claims to believe that “Americans with ASD have made, and will continue to make outstanding contributions for our country and the world,” it takes pains to define us first by our “challenges.” We see this focus reflected in the administration’s policies, such as when the president publicly blames people with developmental disabilities for a deadly plane crash and attacked Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) programs and when he called for a return to institutions and threatened programs that help us to live in our communities.

The administration claims it is moving us towards a brighter future. This is a lie. It is attempting to drag us backwards to a time before people listened to self advocates, when autism research and advocacy centered around institutionalization and the fruitless search for a “cure.” These priorities were wrong before, and they’re still wrong now.

Autistic adults exist. We live and belong in our communities. The services and data we rely on to do that are under threat because of this administration’s policies. The administration may claim that it is working towards a better future for autistic people, but we cannot ignore its harmful actions. We know how to fight back against this awful rhetoric and these regressive policies, because they are the same policies self-advocates have been fighting for decades. ASAN will continue to resist the Trump administration’s dogged attempts to drag us into the past.