More than a half dozen medical groups in Maine issued a joint statement Friday affirming the safety of vaccines. The move is in response to changes on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control's website that promotes a possible link with autism.
The president of the Maine Medical Association, Dr. Jim Jarvis, says decades of rigorous research show that vaccines do not cause autism. He says misinformation is causing increases in preventable diseases because people are rejecting vaccines. Jarvis cites the ongoing measles outbreak and last year's influenza season.
"We did not particularly think that was a harsh influenza season," Jarvis says. "And yet we had more children die of influenza last year than we had- especially if we take out the pandemic years- than we had going back to the early 2000's. That's unconscionable when something as simple as a flu shot can prevent children from getting sick and dying."
Lori Towne, the president of the Maine Nurse Practitioner Association, says the U.S. CDC's website also adds to misconceptions about autism.
"So this promotes the idea that autism is a condition caused by a preventative medical intervention, rather than a complex neuro-developmental condition with genetic and environmental factors," Towne said.
Other organizations that affirmed the safety of vaccines in a joint statement are the Maine chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Maine Public Health Association, the Maine Academy of Family Physicians, the Maine Academy of Physician Associates, and the Maine Osteopathic Association.
