Sensitive But Unclassified or How to Get Around FOIA

Here is the CDC's document telling their staff how to with hold information from the public that was referred to in a previous post:

http://www.fas.org/sgp/othergov/cdc-sbu.pdf

"The purpose of this document is to provide policy and procedures to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention[1] (CDC) that allow for the accomplishment of our public health service mission while safeguarding the various categories of unclassified data and document information that, for legitimate government purposes and good reason, shall be withheld from distribution or to which access shall be denied or restricted."

I thought that their "health service mission" was to gather and disseminate health information?

The Sensitive But Unclassified label "is applied to unclassified information that may be exempt from mandatory release to the public under FOIA."

So I want to know who decides what information is able to be kept from the public? If it truly needs to be kept from the public, then why is it not given a "classified" status?

What measures are in place to prevent the CDC from with holding information from the public that could implicate the CDC itself in poor public policy decisions or downright fraud?

Poor public policy decisions and fraud are things that have actually happened once or twice before in government agencies, and I have even heard of people in government agencies trying to "cover up" such problems by "withholding" information from the "public".

This policy sucks.

From the Power of Parents Rally Team

Power of Parents Rally
Washington, DC
October 7 and 8
Stop the Mercury. Stop the Lies.


OK, folks, here's a quiz for all you autism eggheads out there:

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics website, what is the incidence rate for autism in the United States? (Nevermind that the American Psychiatric Association, the outfit defines "autism," says the number is 1 in 2000)

A) 1 in 500
B) 1 in 333
C) 1 in 166
D) All the above

And the answer is....

If you said "A", you're correct, the AAP says on their website that the autism incidence rate (including other ASDs) is 1 in 500.

See: http://www.aap.org/policy/autism.html

If you said "B" good for you! This is a correct answer too! One in a thousand for full-blown autism and 2 in a thousand for the lower-octane derivatives.

See:

http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;107/5/1221

If you said "C" well. that's right too! There is a dead link, however, to a document that came out a few months ago called Autism A.L.A.R.M., remember that one? It said the autism rate was 1 in 166. But you can't find this one on the AAP website anymore. It has also disappeared as far as I can tell from the websites of the other entities that sponsored the document: our good buddies at CDC, USDHHS, Medical Home Initiatives and First Signs.Hmmm. I wonder why.

Copies of Autism A.L.A.R.M. are still floating around the net. The text is below. I particularly like the "L" for listen to parents, there's a novel thought. No wonder they pulled it.

http://www.helpautismnow.com/PDFS/AutismAlarm.pdf

SO the real correct answer is "D"!

Just another example of the crackerjack job those dedicated and hardworking MDs at the AAP are doing to assure you that you should trust them with blind, unquestioning confidence. After twenty years of skyrocketuing gains they still can't figure out what's going on. But they know better than us, so who are you to question them?

This has got to stop. And only we can stop it.

Power of Parents
Washington, DC
October 7 and 8
Stop the Mercury. Stop the Lies.


Autism A.L.A.R.M text below:

Autism is prevalent

• 1 out of 6 children are diagnosed with a developmental disorder and/or behavioral problem
• 1 in 166 children are diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder
• Developmental disorders have subtle signs and may be easily missed

Listen to parents
• Early signs of autism are often present before 18 months
• Parents usually DO have concerns that something is wrong
• Parents generally DO give accurate and quality information
• When parents do not spontaneously raise concerns, ask if they have any

Act early
• Make screening and surveillance an important part of your practice (as endorsed by the AAP)
• Know the subtle differences between typical and atypical development
• Learn to recognize red flags
• Use validated screening tools and identify problems early
• Improve the quality of life for children and their families through early and appropriate intervention

Refer
• To Early Intervention or a local school program (do not wait for a diagnosis)
• To an autism specialist, or team of specialists, immediately for a definitive diagnosis
• To audiology and rule out a hearing impairment
• To local community resources for help and family support

Monitor
• Schedule a follow-up appointment to discuss concerns more thoroughly
• Look for other features known to be associated with autism
• Educate parents and provide them with up-to-date information
• Advocate for families with local early intervention programs, schools, respite care agencies, and insurance companies
• Continue surveillance and watch for additional or late signs of autism and/or other developmental disorders

For More Information: www.medicalhomeinfo.org

FDA Adding Mercury Vaccines????

FDA FAST-TRACKS MERCURY VACCINE
Monday, October 03, 2005 - FreeMarketNews.com

Noted health expert Dr. Joseph Mercola reports the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has “fast-tracked” a new mercury-filled vaccine, despite a growing controversy over an alleged linkage between mercury and autism and various other illnesses. He writes on his website as follows, "It has been six years since the American Academy of Pediatrics and the U.S. Public Health Service joined forces in requesting the removal of all mercury-containing preservative thimerosal from vaccines”, then points out a new flu vaccine from GlaxoSmithKline, Fluarix containing considerable mercury has just been approved for sale in the United States this fall, under an accelerated FDA approval process.

Mercola reminds us that "[T]he Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland wasn't just an idle fancy," since "[m]ercury salts were used to make felt for fancy hats." He outlines the conditions that have been attributed to mercury poisoning, including multiple sclerosis, central nervous system disorders, autism and Alzheimer's Disease, and asks, "Is this really something you want injected into yourself, and your children?"

Mercola also lists a number of methods for flu prevention without taking the shots, ranging from a healthy low-sugar diet, exercise and rest; to cutting stress and eating garlic; to simply washing hands more often. - ST

CDC With Holds Information

Scientists want agency to provide data on flu to help with vaccines
By Rebecca Carr
Monday, October 3, 2005

WASHINGTON -- Scientists are accusing the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of hoarding crucial data that could help vaccinations at a time when there is growing concern about a possible influenza pandemic.

The nation's disease control center is also under fire from open-government advocates for recently issuing a guide on how to keep data, documents and information from public inspection. Called the "Information Security" manual, the 34-page document provides officials 19 categories to shield data from public scrutiny without obtaining a "secret" classification.

Open-government advocates say the CDC's actions run counter to its mission. The CDC's role is to disseminate public health information, not withhold it, said Steven Aftergood, director of the Federation of American Scientists' Project on Government Secrecy, which first published the leaked manual on its Web site.

"The CDC is not the CIA," Aftergood said. "Withholding data is not just bad public policy, it is bad science."

Withholding data impedes the normal process of scientific replication of results and of peer review, Aftergood said. The CDC's behavior of withholding "is just baffling," he said.

In its Sept. 22 issue, the journal Nature reported widespread concern among influenza researchers that too little flu data collected by the CDC is made available for research, hindering efforts to develop vaccines.

One National Institutes of Health researcher said that other than the occasional large deposits of data that accompany published papers required by journals, information is "coming through an eyedropper."

Influenza researchers said their work would progress faster if they could access the CDC's databases of virus sequences and immunological and epidemiological data.

Nature quoted Michael Deem, a scientist at Rice University, as saying: "Many in the influenza field are displeased with the CDC's practice of refusing to deposit sequences of most of the strains that they sequence."

Nature's own analyses found that the CDC deposited less than a tenth of the 15,000 influenza A sequences in the gene database Genbank and the influenza sequence database at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. By comparison, a consortium led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases deposited more than 2,800 sequences this year alone.

In response to questions, Dr. Nancy J. Cox, chief of the influenza branch of the CDC, said that though the agency is committed to sharing information in an open and timely manner, it must be "balanced against the needs for maintaining high standards for data quality and for protecting sensitive information when the situation warrants."

Cox said the agency wants to improve its data-sharing efforts. The agency recently revised its policy on sharing data to meet its goal of sharing information in a timely way, she said.

Cox said, "The purpose of this new policy is to ensure that CDC routinely provides data to its partners for appropriate public health purposes and that all data are released and/or shared as soon as feasible without compromising privacy, federal and state confidentiality agreements, propriety issues, national security interests, or law enforcement activities."

One concern the CDC may have about sharing data is how it would affect any partnership it might have with vaccine manufacturers, said David Webster, president of Webster Consulting Group Inc., a health-industry consulting firm.

The CDC might be concerned that those manufacturers might not be able to recoup their investment if the information is widely available.

UPDATE: Here is the CDC's document telling their staff how to with hold information from the public that was referred to:

http://www.fas.org/sgp/othergov/cdc-sbu.pdf

The Sensitive But Unclassified label "is applied to unclassified information that may be exempt from mandatory release to the public under FOIA."

So I want to know who decides what information is able to be kept from the public? If it truly needs to be kept from the public, then why is it not given a "classified" status?

This policy sucks.

Autism Survey

From Joanne Burke

Hello to all.

A world autism survey has been launched.
www.autism-survey.com

Please Please Please take the time to fill it in..at the most its 5 min.
I managed to be at the launch at the NAS conference in London and also managed to get the organisers to amend it to include biomed questions.

Such as history of viruses , bowel issues etc.
Treatments tried with what success
and any testing and what the tests showed

Results available February.
Should give us a good idea of which kids respond to which treatments given their history / test results.

Thank you for your time....pass it on to everyone you know thats affected...

Joanne

100 plus kids will kill themselves on Strattera

(UPDATE: Commenter noted that dear husband added a zero. Math fixed. Wife will pay closer attention next time.)

It also looks like the article was poorly written and suggested that the total number of participants (including placebo) was 1357, while another source said that the number of those receiving the drug was 1357. So I will correct later when I have time.)

When I got home today, my husband had printed this article out and written his notes on it for me. Here were his observations using the numbers in the article:

1357 test subjects
851 given placebo - none with suicidal ideation (SI)
506 given Strattera - 5 with SI - this equals 1% of the group.

3.4 million patients on the drug
75% are children
2.55 million children on Strattera

1% of 2.55 million = 2,550 children will have suicidal ideation because of the drug.

"There are 2,400 adolescents thinking about suicide for every one that commits suicide"

This means 100 or so kids will successfully kill themselves because of Strattera.

FDA Warns About ADHD Drug Strattera
By JOHN J. LUMPKIN,
Associated Press Writer Thu Sep 29, 8:33 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The Food and Drug Administration warned doctors Thursday about reports of suicidal thinking in some children and adolescents who are taking Strattera, a drug used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Manufacturer Eli Lilly & Co. announced that a black-box warning will be added to the drug's label in the United States. Such a warning is the most serious that can be added to a medication's label, and similar warnings will be added to the drug's labels in other countries. The company said a study showed instances of suicidal
thinking were rare.

In a statement, the FDA said it "is advising health care providers and caregivers that children and adolescents being treated with Strattera should be closely monitored for clinical worsening, as well as agitation, irritability, suicidal thinking or behaviors, and unusual changes in behavior, especially during the initial few months of therapy or when the dose is changed."

Eli Lilly said it provided the FDA results from Strattera clinical trials of 1,357 patients that found five youths taking the medication reported having suicidal thoughts, while none of 851 patients taking a placebo reported having any. One young person taking Strattera attempted suicide, but survived, company and FDA officials said.

There was no evidence of increased suicidal thoughts in adults taking Strattera, which also goes by the generic name atomoxetine, the Indianapolis-based company said.

"The
actual risk is very low," said Dr. Thomas Laughren, head of the FDA's psychiatric drug unit. Despite the warning, he said, "FDA still views Strattera as an effective drug."

At the FDA's request, Eli Lilly will publish a guide for doctors and pharmacists to give to people who are prescribed Strattera.

The warning is the result of a larger FDA review of psychiatric drugs and their possible association with suicide, the agency said. Old drug studies are being reviewed for occurrences of suicides and suicidal thoughts. Last year, the FDA ordered warnings on all antidepressants that they "increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior" in children who take them.

Strattera won praise from some doctors and parents when it became available because, unlike Ritalin, it is not a stimulant, a class of drug that can be addictive. But its chemical makeup is similar to certain antidepressants.

A review of other ADHD drugs is continuing, Laughren said.

About 3.4 million patients — adults and children — have been prescribed Strattera since it became available, with Lilly officials saying about 75 percent of those taking the medication are children.

Dr. Harold Koplewisz, a professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at the New York
University School of Medicine, said that 19 percent of all teenagers have
suicidal thoughts, making "suicidal thoughts in adolescents part of the normal
experience."

"There are 2,400 adolescents thinking about suicide for every one that commits suicide," he said in an e-mail. "We are talking about a medication that may make some children and teenagers uncomfortable, which is very different than a lethal situation like a gun in a house."

Still, he said, all children and teens taking psychiatric medication should be monitored.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder affects as many as 7 percent of school-aged children and 4 percent of adults in the United States.

Strattera's worldwide sales have dropped lately, falling 31 percent to $123.5 million during this year's second quarter from a year earlier.

Lilly warned doctors in December to stop using Strattera in patients with jaundice or who show signs of liver problems, and it placed a warning on the label and in prescribing information after at least two patients on the medication developed liver problems.

The company said Thursday it believes the drug is safe.

"While suicidal thinking was uncommon in patients on the medication during clinical trials, it is important for parents to be aware it can occur, and to discuss any unusual symptoms with a physician, " said Alan Breier, Lilly's chief medical officer, in a statement. "Lilly continues to view Strattera as a safe and effective treatment option, and those doing well on the medication should be able to continue their treatment with confidence."

The Age of Autism: Regression

The Age of Autism: Regression
By Dan Olmsted, UPI Senior Editor

Regression, regression, regression.

That's the theme of much of the e-mail this column has received, sparked by two recent installments. The first reported confirmation by a University of Washington study that parents are right when they say they have watched their children lose language and social skills and become autistic. The study reviewed first-birthday videos, which documented that regression had come afterward.

The other article reviewed 83 reports filed during the 1990s in which doctors or parents suspected a link between vaccinations and the onset of autism.

Monday's column featured a parent who filed such a report -- to the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System -- in 1996. That was well before a possible link became a matter of public debate later in the decade.

In 1998 a British doctor published a study that suggested a possible link between the MMR -- measles, mumps, rubella -- vaccine and autism. The next year the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics urged that a mercury-based preservative called thimerosal be phased out of childhood vaccines as soon as possible.

Health authorities -- including the CDC and AAP -- dismiss any link between vaccines and autism. Some as-yet-unidentified environmental factor might play a role, they say, but vaccines are not that factor.

Here are some e-mail comments by parents to Age of Autism. Two of the correspondents agreed to be identified by name.

The cases sound so familiar to my granddaughter's. On Jan. 20, 1997, my granddaughter received a DPT-Hib shot (diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus and haemophilus influenzae type B); her leg swelled and got very red for about five hours and she cried a high pitch scream. Would not sleep.

My grandchild's skills started to disappear and then she started having seizures. She was diagnosed with autism. Now at the age of 9 she does not talk; has seizures; every day she wears diapers, cannot feed herself. I know it was the shot because everything changed about her as soon as the shot was given.

She was put on the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System not long after she was damaged.

After I read that column (about first-birthday videos documenting subsequent regression), I got the courage to view one of my family's home videos, taken on Easter in 2002 when my sons were 1 and 4.

While I knew that my son Matthew had regressed (he had lost about 50 words so that was hard to miss), I wasn't certain about other developmental milestones -- after all, I wasn't looking for autism. I have listened to and read the work of many experts who state that autism is present from birth and that parents probably miss the earlier signs.

So, I just wasn't sure. Had Matthew once had normal eye contact? Normal engagement? Had he answered to his name? Had he pointed to show us things, brought us things? Had he done all those normal things or had the absence been subtle and I hadn't noticed?

What I saw on the video, Easter 2002, when Matthew is 16 months old, simply stunned me. In the 20-minute tape he does all the developmental milestones listed above, as well as more.

What I saw was a completely normal toddler, joyfully opening his Easter basket with his older brother, fully engaged with what was going on around him. He answers questions, brings my husband things from his basket, points to show us something, responds to his name -- and is alive, aware and happy in a different way than he is now.

Honestly, I cried hysterically while viewing the video, and when I called my husband he thought someone must have gotten in a car accident.

I think my husband was equally surprised at all of the normal development Matthew displayed on the video. Time really plays with your memory and the last couple of years have been a blur to us. Although my husband was not nearly as emotional as myself(!), he did and does feel anger.

My older son Jay, who just turned 8, also viewed the video. His viewing was punctuated with such comments as "Wow, did you see Matthew do that?" and "Wow, you only had to say Matthew's name ONCE and he turned" (unlike now where we must say it several times to gain attention).

As you can imagine, Jay is wise beyond his years and turned to me after and said, "Have you figured out what happened to Matthew or are you still working on it?"

Knowing Matthew was so normal up to that point leaves me feeling a huge "what if." I am more determined than ever to do everything in my power to restore my son back to the child he was meant to be.
- Jeannie Meijer, Acton, Mass.

Our daughter was born in August 1995. I may have my dates off ... but she was given the MMR in or around Oct 1996. She was progressing nicely in language skills at that time. A few weeks after the shot, we traveled from New Jersey to Florida on vacation. While there, she got sick, a cold, and was given an antibiotic.

Not being attuned to autism, we didn't immediately focus on the reversal of her language skills, and the sudden temperamental behavior from what had been an easygoing girl. Eventually, she was diagnosed with a language deficit and was diagnosed as autistic. With some wonderful work at the JFK You and Me Program in Edison, N.J., she is now an almost completely normal fifth grader, in a mainstream school, without an aide.

When we got the diagnosis of autism for our daughter, we were in the seventh month of pregnancy for our third child. We immediately read everything we could find. By 1999, the vaccination/MMR story was out there, and we presented it to our pediatrician. He agreed to postpone the immunizations as long as possible, and then give them one at a time.

One theory was that after the mumps, measles and rubella shots were lumped into one (MMR), the observed rate of autistic children rose dramatically. Too much vaccination, often given to a too small child. Our son might have been approaching 50 pounds when he got the first shot ... as we faced the medical requirements of entering preschool ... it didn't work. He was diagnosed at 4, although he had better communication skills than our daughter did at that age.

Even today, it is apparent that the nature of his issues are different than those that affected my daughter.

I, too, am a parent who is convinced my child was adversely affected by the MMR vaccine. Over the years he slowly regressed into a high-functioning form of autism.

We took him to a DAN (Defeat Autism Now!) doctor some months ago and he was found to have no significant levels of any toxic metals, but his immune system was totally out of kilter.

He showed no immunity at all to measles (despite two MMR injections) combined with an ultra-high immunity to rubella. In addition he had score of 24 on the myelin basic protein autoantibodies test when the norm is under 5. This indicates his autoimmune system is attacking the myelin shield in the brain. We are now considering ways to treat this.

I have taken a little time to research vaccinations on the Internet and found some fascinating information. Israel is a medically advanced country where the life expectancy is in fact higher than in the U.S., while cases of autism occurring there are considerably lower.

What I learned is that in Israel, which has an extensive vaccination program, they do not give them MMR. Rather they vaccinate young children for measles only and vaccinate them for mumps and rubella only when they are older. Their reasoning seems to be that since mumps and rubella are not known to occur in very young children, why vaccinate them for something they cannot catch?

This makes a great deal of sense to me in that if you are vaccinating children for a disease to which by nature they are not susceptible, this could indeed harm the autoimmune system.
- Harry Eisenberg, Glen Rock, N.J.

My son, now 14, was harmed by thimerosal. I would be happy to provide all of his medical records, my own medical records from labor and delivery onward ... anything to help this cause.

I also can show documentation by video of the days after the vaccination that sent his world into darkness. It is eerie to know how and when it happened. Heartbreaking.

At 14 my son understands that he has autism and why. He is livid with the "people who did this to him." Every day he says he wants to go to the hospital to get the shot to get rid of autism. Every day.

Risks of Hep B Vaccine

I am not a fan of the Hep B vaccine. Chandler had two major adverse reactions to it. The 'birth dose' at two weeks left him with three months of 'colic' and fevers and years of bowel problems, and his dose at 18 months left him speechless. This was all the more sad for me when I found out that Chandler is not even at risk for hepatitis B as he is neither an IV Drug User nor sexually promiscuous. Here is a press release from Europe this week:

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS RISK TO BRITISH BABIES HEALTH
27 September 2005.
NEWS RELEASE

Multiple Sclerosis Risk to British Babies

- Newly Revealed By Previously Concealed Evidence

London, England & Versailles, France [27] September 2005/Romeike/ Strong scientific evidence confirms British infants will be exposed to an unacceptably high risk of complications, including multiple sclerosis, if the British Medical Association's (BMA's) recent universal infant hepatitis B vaccine recommendation goes ahead. Whilst other evidence is embargoed, Dr. Marc Girard, a specialist in the side effects of drugs and commissioned as a medical expert by French courts, has been able to publish a scientific review of the unembargoed evidence of the vaccine's hazards (Autoimmun Rev 2005; 4:96-100). Dr Girard shows that French health authorities suppress studies demonstrating serious risks. France was the first country to implementuniversal hepatitis B vaccination in 1994.

Legal and ethical concerns also arise over the BMA's recommendation because those at high risk from the hepatitis B virus are not infants but promiscuous adults engaging in unsafe sex and intravenous drug abusers. There is no clear individual clinical benefit of universal hepatitis B vaccination. The duration of any protective effect is uncertain whereas the vaccination carries with it risks of numerous chronic auto-immune disorders, including Guillain-Barre syndrome, lupus, rheumatism, blood disorders and chronic fatigue. In contrast, the BMA's 10th May 2005 press release stated children were at risk of hepatitis B infection from:

* biting and shared toys

* shared toothbrushes and razors

* mother to child transmission during birth

Dr Girard said:

"The BMA's recommendation is a surprising and unexpected change of heart given the scathing public scepticism in the British Medical Journal in 1996 to a pharmaceutical company promotion advocating universal infant hepatitis B vaccination (BMJ 1996; 313: 825). It is all the more surprising because whilst the risk factors for babies have changed little, there is now impressive evidence that for a preventive measure, hepatitis B vaccine is remarkable for the frequency, variety and severity of complications from its use. The toxicity of this vaccine is so unusual that, even if crucial data are regrettably concealed or covered by Court order, scientific evidence is already far higher than normally needed to justify severe restrictive measures."

In addition, just days ago (20 Sept, 2005) the European Medicines Agency EMEA) announced the withdrawal of hepatitis B containing Hexavac vaccine, claiming concerns over efficacy. Hexavac had 4 months earlier been associated with sudden infant deaths (Zinka et al. Vaccine 2005 May 18). Hexavac combines hepatitis B vaccine virus with other routine vaccine components. The EMEA's reasons for withdrawal are questionable. Efficacy trials are normally performed before vaccines are licensed.

Other research supporting Dr Girard's findings includes research on UK data showing a 3.1 increase in the relative risk of multiple sclerosis after hepatitis B vaccination (Neurology 2004; 63:838-42).

Clifford Miller, British lawyer, graduate physicist, co-author of a recent peer reviewed critique of flawed medical evidential practice and former university lecturer said:-

"British Doctors administering hepatitis B vaccine to infants could face criminal prosecution if fully informed consent is not obtained.Civil prosecution for damages is possible over 21 years later if the injured survive as adults."

"English and European law requires the application of the precautionary principle. With such strong scientific evidence of harm it is unclear why the BMA's recommendation was made, nor why universal infant hepatitis B vaccination is reportedly being considered by the UK Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation."

"This is not the first time the BMA has executed a spectacular `U' turn. Up to 1987 they consistently recommended against mumps vaccination. In 1988 that conflicted with new government policy and the objection was quietly dropped. The BMA's links with the pharmaceutical industry are also a concern. The next government proposal in the pipeline is to vaccinate against chickenpox, the mildest known of all routine childhood diseases and for which the UK Department of Health has ready prepared stories claiming it is a killer."

"The British public should be concerned their children's safety rests with independent researchers from overseas who can face harassment, obstruction and official vilification for their work."

In his new paper now in press and available on line (Med Hypotheses, doi 10.1016/j.mehy.2005.08.012), Dr Girard and co-author Y. Comenge review the various mechanisms likely to account for the biological plausibility of auto-immune disorders such as demyelinating diseases and other hazards of this vaccine.

Because of the significance and scope of these observations and related cross- correlations, Dr. Girard suggests that even in high-endemic countries, the risk/benefit ratio of this unusually toxic vaccine must be carefully re-assessed. Regarding the health situation in the UK, the conclusion not to vaccinate is obvious.

INFORMATION FOR EDITORS:

About Dr Marc Girard:-

Pharmaceutical Industry Consultant: Glaxo, Aventis & others

Court Appointed Expert: Includes Bayer/Baycol cholesterol drug litigation

Medical Doctor: Qualified 1983, trained: Hopital des Enfants Malades,

Paris, France

Masters in Mathematics 1976: Universite d'Orsay, Paris, France

References Used in Press Release:-

"Multiple sclerosis and hepatitis B vaccination: Adding the credibility of molecular biology to an unusual level of clinical and epidemiological evidence" Comenge Y; Girard M (Med Hypotheses, doi 10.1016/j.mehy.2005.08.012)

(Text available in electronic form on request.)

"Autoimmune hazards of hepatitis B vaccine" Girard M (Autoimmun Rev 2005; 4:96-100)

(Text available in electronic form on request.)

"BMA calls for universal childhood vaccination against hepatitis B" Press Release (10 May 2005):

http://tinyurl.com/7ca6j

"Medicine and the media: Shire Hall Communications and the case for hepatitis B immunisation" BMJ 1996;313:825 (28 September 1996) :http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/313/7060/825

"European Medicines Agency recommends suspension of Hexavac" Press Release - 20th September 2005

http://www.emea.eu.int/pdfs/human/press/pr/29736905en.pdf

"Unexplained cases of sudden infant death shortly after hexavalent vaccination." Zinka B, Rauch E,

Buettner A, Rueff F, Penning R. - Vaccine. 2005 May 18;

http://tinyurl.com/drm8g

"Recombinant hepatitis B vaccine and the risk of multiple sclerosis - A prospective study" Hernan MA, Jick SS, Olek MJ, Jick H(Neurology 2004; 63:838-42).

"Flawed Evidence Denies Drug Victims Justice" - Press Release, Romeike/PA

http://tinyurl.com/adk38

"On Evidence, Medical and Legal" Dr D W Miller, Clifford Miller: - 10; 03- 70. J AmPhys Surg -

http://www.jpands.org/vol10no3/miller.pdf

========== Contact information

Dr. Marc Girard
Address: 1 bd de la Republique 78000-Versailles (France)
Mobile phone: 00 33 6 82 94 54 62
E-Mail: agosgirard@free.fr
Telephone: 00 331 39670110
Fax : 00 331 396700111

Mr. Clifford G. Miller
Address: Burnhill Business Centre,
50 Burnhill Road,
Beckenham,
Kent BR3 3LA (UK)
Mobile: 00 44 7941-976021
E-Mail: mediapr@cliffordmiller.com
Telephone: 00 44 208 663 0044
Fax: 00 44 208 663 0011

Another Success Story

Patrick Sullivan Jr. has a wonderful story on Pat Sr's blog. It is by a chelating dad about the day his "autistic" son became indistinguishable from his older brother's entire flag football team after only 3.5 months of chelation.

This is the message that this Dad wants to pass onto others:

For the parents out there that are reading this and considering chelation therapy for their "autistic" child and are trying to decide whether it is worth it, let me just say this. Do not listen to the people that tell you that this is BS and that the parents doing this are stupid. Remember one thing. The vast majority of these people telling you NOT to do it HAVE NO EXPERIENCE WITH IT! Instead, listen to the thousands of parents that are doing it now. They do not lie. Get several opinions. Listen to the other parents that are not doing it also and compare the results of the two sets of children. That is why I decided to proceed with this treatment. Out of the dozens of parents of "autistic" children that I spoke to before I started my son's treatment, all of the ones that were seeing drastic improvements in their children had one thing in common.... Chelation Therapy.

UPDATE: Clarification and Update from his dad:

Scott Shoemaker (Joshua's Father) said...
"Hi Ginger, thanks for helping to get the message out. There is one thing I would like to correct, though. My son WAS distinguishable from the other kids on the team. You have to remember he was 2-4 years younger than the other kids. The amazing thing was that the coaches could not tell there was anything wrong with him. He just came across as a typical 3 year old trying to fit in with kids that were much older than he was, when prior to chelation he would have just watched them from the sidelines jumping up and down flapping his hands and spinning if he watched them at all.

Also, it was a month and a half since I posted that story, and we are still seeing big gains."

Mercury Activity

The Keene Sentinel
Editorial
Sunday, September 25, 2005

In the current tight energy market, coal is a bargain for generating electricity. It’s cheaper than oil and gas. If you count the massive cost of storing spent atomic fuel for 100,000 years or so, it’s a darn sight cheaper than nuclear power.

But the country’s 600 coal-burning power plants pose a serious problem. They pump out 48 tons of mercury every year. About 136 pounds of that come from the two coal-burning plants of Public Service Company of New Hampshire: Schiller Station in Portsmouth and Merrimack Station in Bow. Merrimack Station is PSNH’s largest power plant.

And that mercury gets into the air, and into water, and into the fish we eat. It can cause nerve damage. It affects people’s cardiovascular and immune systems. It is especially dangerous in pregnant women, as it can cause permanent memory and language problems in children. It has also been linked to autism.

So how would you like to live downwind of Merrimack Station?
Earlier this year, that frightful question prompted the New Hampshire Senate to pass a bill that would supersede the Bush administration’s lax environmental regulations and require PSNH to cut its mercury emissions by more than half — to 50 pounds — by 2009 and to 24 pounds by 2013.

At the time, PSNH complained that meeting those strict limits would cost tens of millions of dollars, if it could be done at all. Some environmental experts said that a carbon-injection system for smokestacks could trap most of the deadly mercury for less than a million dollars, but PSNH contended that carbon-injection technology was doubtful and unproven.

Probably as a result of those objections, the New Hampshire House did not pass the bill. But the House did send it to the Science, Technology and Energy Committee for study. Real study, as it turns out. The committee has been meeting over the summer and expects to bring the bill back early next year in some form or another.

In the meantime, PSNH has gotten religion. It conducted a small test of carbon-injection technology this summer — results should be known soon — and it has just teamed with a Colorado engineering firm to apply for a $2.5 million federal grant to try a more extensive test next year at Merrimack Station. “PSNH is actively exploring strategies to reduce mercury at its power plants,” said Gary Long, PSNH’s president and chief operating officer.

It’s tempting to be cynical about this, to conclude that PSNH is only responding to the challenge posed by the anti-pollution bill. But so what if it is? Isn’t that the way representative self-government is supposed to work? People complain, legislators act, good things happen.

And if only the possibility of a tough mercury-pollution standard can generate so much positive activity, just imagine what will happen if the New Hampshire House and Senate actually get together in a few months and pass one?

UA: ATTENTION FAMILIES IN THE GULF COAST REGION

Unlocking Autism has been dealing with families displaced by Katrina and has advice to offer those in the path of Rita:

We have all learned lessons from Hurricane Katrina. As Hurricane Rita, which is has grown into a strong Category 4 storm, begins to approach the Gulf Coast, we are working hard to use what we learned from Katrina to prepare for Rita, only three weeks later.

ATTENTION FAMILIES IN THE GULF COAST REGION:

If you will potentially be impacted by Hurricane Rita (along the coast of Texas and Southwest Louisiana), you are invited to register your family or families you know about who have children with autism? at the AutismCares website, free of charge. You can put in emergency contact information so that our coordinators can call to check on you after the storm hits. A checklist to help you and your family prepare for the storm is listed below. Should your family need anything after the storm, we will do our best to assist you in coordinating those needs.

Registering prior to the storm will help us be more effective

in our efforts once it passes.

To register, please fill out the form at www.autismcares.org before landfall on Friday/Saturday.

We are still working hard to assist families we have located in the aftermath of Katrina. If you know of a family in need of assistance, please contact us at 1-800-960-1844 or email us at autismcares@talkautism.org .

1-800-960-1844

For our friends preparing for Hurricane Rita, please find a list of hurricane preparations below:

Discuss the type of hazards that could affect your family. Know your home's vulnerability to storm surge, flooding and wind. Prepare your house and your yard for the approaching storm. Remove things in the yard that could become projectiles in heavy winds and secure windows as needed.

Locate a safe room or the safest areas in your home for each hurricane hazard. In certain circumstances the safest areas may not be your home but within your community at a shelter. Is the room you select as your safest spot high enough to evade flood waters? Is there glass in the room that can break with winds? If your area is prone to high flood waters, put an ax in the attic so that you can break out if needed. If your home is not safe, evacuate to a shelter.

When selecting your safe room, consider your child's special needs. Will winds be too loud? Bring a battery operated headset with soft music to keep your child distracted or a portable DVD player, games or drawing materials, if possible. Be sure to bring food and beverages with you to the room so that you don't have to leave it during the height of the storm.

If you have to evacuate in separate modes of transportation, determine escape routes from your home and places to meet. These should be measured in tens of miles rather than hundreds of miles. Have directions with alternate routes available in the event that you are diverted to a different course than what you originally planned by officials. Have a map in the car.

Have an out-of-state friend as a family contact, so all your family members have a single point of contact. Register at AutismCares when you evacuate so that we will be able to assist you more quickly and bring the toll free number with you in your important papers. Remember that phone lines are often damaged for weeks after the storm so having a contact that is several hundred miles from your own area code is a good idea. Make sure that your cell phone is fully charged and that you have important phone numbers either programmed into it or a list of those numbers with you.

Refill any necessary prescriptions for all members of your family. Have medication and supplements that your child might take on hand with enough for a two week supply, minimum. Bring a copy of your child's doctors names and phone numbers.

If you do evacuate to a shelter, put a label on the back of your child's shirt with their name, your name, your emergency contact information and their diagnosis in case you are separated during the evacuation.

Bring any important documents with you including a copy of your child's IEP, insurance papers, medical records, school records, evaluations, etc. Take pictures of your house in each room if you can and bring the film with you. Be sure to have pictures of all family members with you in the event that any of you are separated so that you can notify people more quickly.

Contact the local Red Cross, or local emergency officials, in your area to determine if Special Needs Shelters have been set up prior to the storm's arrival in case you need to evacuate to one. A Special Needs Shelter is more prepared to handle your child's needs.

Make a plan now for what to do with your pets if you need to evacuate.

Post emergency telephone numbers by your phones and make sure your children know how and when to call 911.

Check your insurance coverage - flood damage is not usually covered by homeowners insurance.

Stock non-perishable emergency supplies and a Disaster Supply Kit. You will need candles, flashlights, batteries, enough bottled water for your whole family for five days, charcoal, lighter fluid and matches for cooking, mosquito repellent, ice , toilet paper, body wipes, diaper wipes, plastic bags, diapers (as needed). We also recommend keeping hand cleansers like Purell handy. You might want to make sure that you have Bleach in the event that you need to use it to sterilize water or surfaces contaminated by sewer backups or flood waters.

In the most affected areas, fill your bathtubs and any other containers with water after the storm passes in the event that water pumps fail. This will allow you to still be able to flush your toilet by boiling the water from the tub to the toilet. Be sure to keep small children out of the bathroom to avoid them stumbling into a full tub.

Use a NOAA weather radio or other battery operated transistor radio. Remember to replace its battery every 6 months, as you do with your smoke detectors.

The majority of deaths associated with Hurricanes result in the post storm flooding. Do not venture out after the Hurricane has past if at all possible until officials indicate that it is safe to do so.

The Age of Autism: Adverse events

The Age of Autism: Adverse events
By Dan Olmsted
UPI Senior Editor
Sep. 21, 2005 at 12:59PM

Years before the alarm sounded nationwide about a possible link between vaccines and autism, some doctors were making that connection themselves.

The evidence: 83 reports filed with the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System associating the onset of autism with childhood immunizations. The reports, compiled and catalogued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, were analyzed by Age of Autism.

A report from 1992 listed Feb. 21 as both "vaccination date" and "adverse event date" for a 1-year-old boy: "Patient received MMR vaccination (measles-mumps-rubella) and experienced fever, autistic behaviors, encephalitic condition, began to tune out; sound sensitivity, hand-flapping, wheel-spinning, nighttime sweats, appetite increase."

The child's diagnoses included autism, encephalopathy (brain swelling), mental retardation, personality disorder and speech disorder.

Another report: Two days after being vaccinated in August 1994 a 1-year-old girl experienced "low fever, much discomfort. Patient laid in bed and cried and moaned; three-four days post-vaccination, rash traveled over patient's body and lasted at least one week. Within six weeks of vaccination patient was observed as losing previously gained language and social skills; diagnosed autistic."

The reports do not prove that any of the autism cases resulted from vaccination. Rather, their potential significance is that a number of qualified observers -- primarily doctors and other health professionals -- suspected a connection and made the effort to report it well before the issue was on the national radar.

In July 1999 the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that manufacturers begin phasing out a mercury-based preservative that was in several childhood vaccines. The concern: As the number of required vaccinations expanded around 1990, children inadvertently got too much mercury, a known neurotoxin.

Since then federal health officials, along with a panel of the Institute of Medicine, have dismissed the concern as unfounded. But some scientists and parent groups continue to assert that childhood immunizations are behind a major rise in autism diagnoses.

The adverse-event reports examined by Age of Autism were sent to VAERS between June 1991 and June 1999 -- the month before the CDC recommendation to phase out thimerosal.

Based on a 1994 report by a California physician, 10 of the 83 cases are unknown children "who received vaccination and (were) diagnosed with autism and encephalopathy." That doctor reported "there are currently 10 cases of autism in children who received DPT/OPV/MMR at 15-18 months." (The reference is to the diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus, polio and MMR vaccines.)

That report also cites a statement from an unidentified vaccine manufacturer: "Dr. ... is not treating physician and does not possess any original records; unclear whether reporter is suggesting possible causal association."

The following excerpts start with the date the report was received by VAERS and the age of the child when vaccinated. The type of vaccine is not always clear and is indicated here only when specified in the event narrative. Medical abbreviations are spelled out for clarity.

--

-- June 5, 1991, age 1.5. Four days post-vaccination developed running fever. To emergency room, temperature 104 and very lethargic. Several tests for various things and couldn't find anything wrong; given antibiotics as a precaution; then lost speech and was diagnosed with autism.

-- July 7, 1995, age 1.9. Patient developed localized swelling with redness in injection site following vaccination. Also had high temperature, loss of balance, limping followed with high-pitched screaming and loss of speech. Diagnosed pervasive personality disorder/autistic.

-- May 29, 1996, age 1.3. Patient received vaccination, experienced a fever of 104.6 which lasted for approximately three to four days. Patient was very lethargic and appeared changed in temperament and abilities; symptoms of autism such as head banging were noticed.

-- April 3, 1997, age 1.2. Evening of vaccination, patient developed temperature of 104.2 and cried all night with high pitched screaming. (Next day) patient wouldn't eat and was listless; patient went off all solid foods; within next three months patient lost all speech abilities; diagnosed with autism.

-- April 15, 1997, age 1.3. Patient received vaccination and developed a big change in mental status that was described as an atypical infantile autistic state with mild seizures; at the age of one or two the patient started sleeping all the time.

-- Aug. 4, 1997, age 6 months. Patient received vaccination and immediately experienced a fever of 104 and developed a quarter-size lump at the injection site; 30 to 60 days post-vaccination patient developed autism; the quarter-size lump persisted for approximately six weeks.

-- March 2, 1999, age 1.3. Loss of all developmental milestones immediately post-vaccination; patient has autism; communication disorder, auditory processing disorder, asthma, food allergies, chronic diarrhea, digestive problems.

-- April 21, 1999, age 1.5. Patient received vaccination; (three days later) after midnight patient woke up screaming unconsolably with hysteria. Later in morning, patient could not talk and could not comprehend anything. Extensive testing done; diagnosis: autism. Continues in this state today.

-- May 27, 1999, age 1.3. Fever immediately post-vaccination -- diarrhea, ulcers on diaper area; chronic digestive problems, loss of speech; stimming behavior; autism, seizure disorder. The patient's ulcerative colitis and gastritis are currently under the care of a physician.

--

Since 1999, the federal government's vaccine databases have come under scrutiny from critics who charge they have been manipulated to show no connection between vaccines and autism. They also say the CDC has a built-in conflict of interest because it sets the universal childhood immunization schedule that is then adopted by the states.

The agency vigorously defends its research and denies that its role in vaccination policy compromises its objectivity.

Last week Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., said he plans to seek funding for an independent review of another CDC vaccine database.

"Part of what I'm going to require in this amendment we're going to put up is that the independent studies not only look at the data, but actually talk to some of the -- examine some of the kids and families to go over family histories," Lieberman said.

Age of Autism: Research Reversal

The Age of Autism: Research Reversal
By Dan Olmsted, UPI Health Editor

As public funding all but dries up for research into a possible link between vaccines and autism, advocates are trying to tap new sources, but it's too early to tell if they will find any.

"It's just appalling," said Jim Moody, counsel to SafeMinds, a group that backs research into a possible link between autism and a mercury preservative called thimerosal that was used in childhood vaccines. He said a number of scientists -- including researchers at Columbia University, the University of Washington and the University of Arkansas -- have been turned down for federal grants to follow up on such studies.

"They're doing cutting-edge work that is being published in nationally significant journals on important issues of national health policy," Moody said, suggesting the projects are being denied for reasons other than merit.

Moody and others said the shutdown stems largely from a recommendation last year by the Institute of Medicine, part of the National Academy of Sciences. The study found no link between vaccines and autism and suggested that money should go to more "promising" areas of autism research.

"It's not surprising it's happened," Moody said of the difficulty finding grant money. "They (the IOM) said it should happen."

Last month on NBC's "Meet the Press," moderator Tim Russert asked IOM
President Harvey Fineberg, "You're absolutely convinced there's no connection between thimerosal and autism?"

To which Fineberg responded: "I'm convinced that the best evidence all points to the lack of an association. These studies can never prove to the point of absolute certainty an absence of an association, but I would say this: Other avenues of research looking at other possible causes today are much more promising ways to spend our precious resources."

A number of other studies and funding sources are being explored by advocates who say the vaccines-mercury issue deserves more scrutiny. Among them:

• Environmental attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who last week discussed launching an independent study of vaccination records at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Kennedy volunteered his clout as a fundraiser and said he could make lawyers available to go after the federal government if it denied access to the database.

Kennedy also discussed using a never-vaccinated group, probably the Amish, as a "control" to assess relative autism rates. United Press International reported earlier this year that autism seems significantly less prevalent in that community, based on anecdotal information and the assessment of doctors who treat the Amish.

• Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., who said last week he plans to ask Congress to fund an independent review of the thimerosal issue and of the statistical analyses performed by the CDC.

Lieberman has become a vocal advocate of continued investigation of a possible link between thimerosal and autism. Some critics argue the CDC has an inherent conflict of interest in examining the issue, because the CDC recommends the childhood immunization schedule that is adopted by the states.

• Rep. Dave Weldon, R-Fla., who told Age of Autism he wants to fund a study of autism rates among the Amish compared with surrounding communities. Weldon, a medical doctor, is a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee.

• William Raub, a top official of the Department of Health and Human Services who told parents this summer that a study of the Amish or similar group was an interesting idea and could be done via the National Institutes of Health.

Last month a group of scientists and advocates met with officials of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences -- a unit of the NIH -- to outline research into possible environmental causes of autism. Raub attended part of the meeting.

Called Environmental Factors in Neurodevelopmental Disorders, the two-day seminar tackled a wide range of possible research topics, including mercury toxicity. Participants are now formulating a research roadmap to present to the NIH and Congress.

The seminar was held in Bethesda, Md., and was sponsored by the National Autism Association and SafeMinds with a grant from NIEHS.

Such developments persuade SafeMinds counsel Moody the funding dearth is "a temporary glitch. I'm fairly sure we'll get this fixed," but Moody said the lack of interest in such research -- in fact, the interest in discouraging it -- is suspicious.

"If I wasn't convinced of the connection between mercury and developmental disorders," he told Age of Autism, "what would convince me is the inaction."