Pneumococcal Doubles Asthema Incidence

From One Click:

One Click Note: The World Health Organization states that for every 1000 children vaccinated with the pneumococcal vaccine, 1.3 children will develop asthma on account of the vaccine. At the same time only 3.6 cases of pneumonia are prevented by vaccinating 1000 children. Pneumonia is an easily treated condition. Asthma on the other hand may be a lifelong disability:

Publication: Bulletin of the World Health Organization;
Type: Letters
Article DOI: 10.2471/BLT.08.054692

Incidence of pneumonia
is not reduced by pneumococcal conjugate vaccine

Sona Chowdhary & Jacob Puliyel

Department of Pediatrics,
St Stephens Hospital,
Tis Hazari,
Delhi 110054,
India.

Correspondence to Jacob Puliyel (e-mail: puliyel@gmail.com).
(Published online: 1 September 2008)

Madhi et al.1 write that the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) is an effective instrument for pneumonia prevention in children. This is not strictly true. WHO data2 suggest that there are 450 million cases of pneumonia each year and that it causes 3.9 million deaths. In the sub-Saharan region of Africa, 1 022 000 die and 702 000 die in south Asia.1 The pneumonia referred to is “clinical pneumonia” – a diagnostic syndrome within the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness – WHO and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) system for triage and clinical management in developing countries.3 The Cochrane database4 states that PCV does not reduce the incidence of clinical pneumonia, although it has been shown to reduce vaccine-serotype bacteraemic pneumonia and radiological pneumonia. The benefit of reducing bacteraemic pneumonia and radiological pneumonia is so minimal that it has no effect on “clinical pneumonia”. Poor nations will need to assess its cost utility carefully.

A study from the Gambia showed that mortality was 16% lower in a PCV immunized group compared to placebo recipients (25.2/1000 children years versus 30.1/1000 children years).5 Data are also provided on adverse effects and deaths within 1 week of receiving any dose of the vaccine or placebo. The mortality benefit was seen in the first week after injection, well before vaccine efficacy could have been established. There were 12 deaths in the vaccine group and 15 among controls (23.8/1000 children years versus 29.8/1000 children years). This suggests that factors other than vaccine efficacy are responsible for the difference in mortality between the groups compared.

There is also another issue that we hope to raise here. The paper states that the vaccine programme would exceed the WHO threshold in 69 eligible countries. The authors assert that these findings are conservative in the sense that they did not assume any herd protection and did not assume protection beyond the age of 2.5 years. Beutels6 has cautioned against this trend of noting the “positive” uncertainties (herd immunity, protection beyond 2.5 years) without reporting the “negative” ones (serotype replacement,7 increased incidence of asthma),8 which could dampen enthusiasm for the intervention.

References

1. Madhi SA, Levine OS, Hajjeh R, Mansoor OD, Cherian T. Vaccines to prevent pneumonia and improve child survival. Bull World Health Organ 2008;86:365-372. PMID:18545739 doi:10.2471/BLT.07.044503

2. Revised global burden of disease 2002 estimates. Geneva: WHO. Available here [accessed 5 August 2008].

3. Integrated Management of Childhood Illness. Geneva: WHO; 2000.

4. Lucero MG, Dulalia VE, Parreno RN, Lim-Quianzon DM, Nohynek H, Makela H, et al. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines for preventing vaccinetype invasive pneumococcal disease and pneumonia with consolidation on x-ray in children under two years of age. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2004;CD004977. PMID:15495133

5. Cutts FT, Zaman SM, Enwere G, Jaffar S, Levine OS, Okoko JB, et al.; Gambian Pneumococcal Vaccine Trial Group. Efficacy of nine-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine against pneumonia and invasive pneumococcal disease in The Gambia: randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet 2005;365:1139-46. PMID:15794968 doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(05)71876-6

6. Beutels P. Potential conflicts of interest in vaccine economics research: a commentary with a case study of pneumococcal conjugate vaccination. Vaccine 2004;22:3312-22. PMID:15308354
doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2004.03.001

7. Eskola J, Kilpi T, Palmu A, Jokinen J, Haapakoski J, Herva E, et al.; Finnish Otitis Media Study Group. Efficacy of a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine against acute otitis media. N Engl J Med 2001;344:403-9. PMID:11172176 doi:10.1056/NEJM200102083440602

8. Klugman KP, Madhi SA, Huebner RE, Kohberger R, Mbelle N, Pierce N; Vaccine Trialists Group. A trial of a 9-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in children with and those without HIV infection. N Engl J Med 2003;349:1341-8. PMID:14523142 doi:10.1056/NEJMoa035060

Obama Sponsors Mercury Ban Bill

The bill passed and President Bush is expected to sign it.

I have been looking for some sign from Obama that he understands any of what is at issue here, and I have not seen anything more than talk, and with his comments that he is not for selective vaccination, I had lost hope.

But this shows at least that he understand that mercury is dangerous.

I think it is safe to say that I will be endorsing McCain at this point, unless we see anything further from Obama; but I am glad to see that Obama has take initiative and action in regard to something that will protect children from environmental exposures and ups the anti in how toxic materials are perceived and handled.

Would he go so far as to reform the FDA and HHS and clean out all the conflicts of interest and corruption? I don't see any signs that it is on his radar.

Bush to Sign U.S. Mercury Export Ban
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
UPI

WASHINGTON -- U.S. mercury exports to developing countries will be banned under a measure expected to be signed by President George Bush, backers say.

Under the measure, which was passed by the U.S. Congress with bipartisan support, exports from the United States' mercury stockpile would be banned starting in 2013 and users will be required to store the toxic heavy metal permanently rather than shipping unused mercury overseas, The Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday.

The bill's chief was sponsor Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, who introduced the bill after the Tribune published a series of articles about mercury contamination in fish.

Because fewer U.S. companies are using heavily regulated mercury in industrial processes, the newspaper said concerns are rising about exports of the metal to industries in developing countries where pollution controls are lax.

"We know that mercury can cause serious developmental problems in children and problems affecting vision, motor skills, blood pressure and fertility in adults," Obama said in a statement. "While the United States has improved its efforts to collect and contain mercury, this country remains one of the leading exporters of this dangerous product."

HHS Declares Emergency, Limits Anthrax Vaccine Legal Liability

Damn that Bush Administration is sneaky.

Apparently Secretary Michael Levitt, who is rumored to be telling people in his church parking lot that he knows that mercury in vaccines causes autism, whose department conceded that vaccines caused Hannah Poling's autism, and who will not release the Poling case files to the Polings so that they can understand what reasoning HHS used in making that determination, has declared a "public health emergency" citing the high risk of an anthrax attack on the United States. This "emergency" is set to expire in 2015.

The action that needed to be taken due to this "emergency"? That anthrax vaccine makers will have limited liability for their product. And not just the makers, from what I can see everyone from the CEO who green lights the vaccine, to the government official who mandates it, to the company that distributes it and even down to the guy who puts the needle into your body, they are all covered if you are disabled or killed by the shot.

Mind you it has been 7 years since the anthrax attack on this country, which the government believes came from one of its own researchers, but NOW we are declaring an emergency. I have seen nothing in the media that the US has evidence of a credible anthrax threat. And how exactly Levitt can predict that the threat will last seven years... well I am really interested in hearing more about the reasoning behind that.

1 in 150 children have autism and seventeen percent of children have a developmental disorder or delay and that is not big deal, parents should get used to it. But zero people are coming down with anthrax, and an emergency is declared and no explanation is given as to why.

This following the rash of reports of serious damage to military personnel due to the anthrax vaccine.

Well you heard him Pharma, one more product that you can make, get the government to force people to buy and you don't even have to make sure that it works or doesn't kill people! Man you guys have hit the jackpot! Start pouring money into that Anthrax R&D pipline!

Buy Merck!

UPDATE: The Kansas City Star is reporting that in addition to the anthrax emergency declaration:

"On Oct. 10, he declared health emergencies for smallpox, radiation sickness from the detonation of a nuclear device and poisoning from botulinum toxins, the active ingredient of Botox."

So in addition to the anthrax vaccine...

"The emergency declarations cover a host of antibiotics to fight anthrax infection, anthrax and smallpox vaccines, and a drug to stimulate white blood cell production in people harmed by radiation."

While Leavitt has not commented, his science adviser has,

"Health and Human Services is not invoking the law in response to any immediate threat, said William Raub, science adviser to Leavitt. “We don’t believe there’s anything imminent,” he said. “We’ve tried to be careful to not instill fear in people, (but) if we wait until the day of an event, valuable time is lost … and people could die.”

So they are admitting that there is not any intelligence that the US is facing a bioweapons attack. But they have redefined and "emergency" to mean 'the threat of an emergency'. This would be like looking at the weather map and seeing no hurricanes in the gulf, none forming in the pacific yet declaring a hurricane "emergency" in Tampa (because they could be hit by one in the next seven years) and start giving out FEMA funds to builders there.

Again... autism not an emergency, even though families, school systems and state governments are going broke trying to care for these children... anthrax is an emergency just because one day it might, maybe, eventually be an emergency.

The threat of an emergency is not an emergency.

It is astonishing to me that the Bush administration can so blithely remove the rights of citizens, with no reasonable justification, with apparently little input from the public as our community didn't know about this and actually pat themselves on the back as if they were doing a good thing.

This just makes me angry.

U.S. Limits Anthrax Vaccine Legal Liability

From Friday, October 17, 2008 issue.

By Elaine M. Grossman
Global Security Newswire

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Health and Human Services Department early this month moved to shield government, industry and business officials from lawsuits filed by those who have received the anthrax vaccine (see GSN, Sept. 5, 2007).

Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt established legal immunity for public and private officials who oversee the production or distribution of the anthrax vaccine by declaring a “public health emergency” due to the risk of a bioterrorism attack. He said the emergency began on Oct. 1 and would run through Dec. 31, 2015.

U.S. law provides protection from lawsuits to individuals responsible for selected countermeasures, including antibiotics, during a declared emergency.

Under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act, which President George W. Bush signed into law in December 2005, a health and human services secretary’s emergency declaration can limit financial risk for government program planners and the manufacturers or distributors of pharmaceutical countermeasures. One exception to this immunity would be willful misconduct on the part of covered individuals.

The ramifications, in this instance, could be to prevent individuals who have received one or more anthrax inoculations from taking grievances to court, based on claims that the vaccine caused severe adverse reactions or did not work.

The anthrax vaccine has proven particularly controversial following reports of serious adverse events, including some deaths, among U.S. recipients (see GSN, Nov. 21, 2005). In addition, there are some doubts about the vaccine’s efficacy in protecting people from developing anthrax after breathing in spores during a biological attack.

A 2003 lawsuit — based on lapses in the Food and Drug Administration’s drug-approval process for the vaccine — temporarily shut down the Defense Department’s compulsory anthrax shots program. Mandatory inoculations resumed in 2006 for personnel whose assignments are judged to put them at heightened risk of exposure to anthrax (see GSN, Dec. 16, 2005).

Leavitt’s declaration was published in the Federal Register and quietly heralded at the end of a two-page news release devoted largely to another anthrax-related initiative (see GSN, Oct. 2).

Among the activities now afforded liability protection are those “related to developing, manufacturing, distributing, prescribing, dispensing, administering and using anthrax countermeasures in preparation for, and in response to, a potential anthrax attack,” the HHS news release states. “This includes entities, such as large ‘big-box’ retail stores, retail pharmacies, and other private sector businesses, that help to deliver and distribute medicines.”

Health and Human Services argued the legal shield is essential to guarantee that countermeasures are there if U.S. citizens need them.

“Providing liability protection to all involved in such efforts will help ensure their full participation and bolster response efforts,” according to the news release.

“Preparedness is a shared responsibility that must involve all sectors of society, including the private sector, community groups, families and individuals,” Leavitt stated in the release. “We are using the authorities available to us to do all we can to support preparedness at all levels.”

The move comes as a pivotal advisory group convened by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention prepares to decide whether state and local health officials should consider giving anthrax vaccines to as many as 3 million civilian first responders nationwide (see GSN, Oct. 16).

Millions of U.S. military personnel have already received the vaccines since the Pentagon’s shots program began in 1997, but the law prohibits service members or their families from holding the government liable for injury or death.

Now that the population of vaccine recipients could expand to include millions of civilians — who normally do have a right to take medical injury claims to court — federal response planners and government contractors might be growing nervous about their potential legal vulnerability, according to vaccine critics.

“There are people still getting ill from side effects and from the vaccine,” John Michels, an attorney in litigation targeting the Pentagon’s inoculation program, told Global Security Newswire this week. “When they expand this vaccine from the military population to a civilian population, they’re going to have people who sue.”

Emergent BioSolutions of Rockville, Md. — the nation’s only manufacturer of an FDA-approved anthrax vaccine — recently announced that Health and Human Services had ordered 14.5 million doses of its BioThrax vaccine, worth as much as $404 million. The company is already under a $448 million contract to produce 18.8 million doses of the vaccine.

The vaccine regimen calls for six shots over an 18 month period, plus annual boosters.

Michels said commercial interests appear to be playing a role in the legal immunity issue. He questioned whether there had been any bona fide escalation in the anthrax threat sufficient to justify the declaration of an emergency.

“We have no indications [now] … that we’re much more likely to be attacked by anthrax,” Michels said. “But [government officials] see the writing on the wall. They see … an erosion of [lawsuit] immunity for vaccine manufacturers as a result of widespread civilian use.”

Meryl Nass, a bioterrorism expert who has been highly critical of federal handling of anthrax vaccine issues, accused Leavitt of taking more interest in protecting bureaucrats from legal action than in protecting the public from health threats.

“How do you decide there is an emergency when there is no evidence of one?” she asked in e-mailed comments last week.

Noting the HHS secretary’s designation of “governmental program planners” as among those afforded legal immunity by the declaration, Nass asserted that the agency “designates an emergency as a means to protect itself.”

Leavitt’s declaration, though, states that “targeted liability protections for anthrax countermeasures” are “based on a credible risk that the threat of exposure to [anthrax] and the resulting disease constitutes a public health emergency.” The document does not offer additional details on the nature or level of threat.

A request that Health and Human Services elaborate on the basis for the public health emergency declaration went unanswered at press time.

Every Child By Two Wants to Take the Vaccine Debate to Oprah

Amy Pisani, director of Every Child By Two, (a vaccine advocacy non-profit funded by Pharma) has asked her supporters to write to the Oprah show and ask "that she dedicate a show to the science behind the question of whether vaccines cause autism".

We here at Adventures in Autism think that is a GREAT idea.

It is LONG past time to have an ACTUAL public debate between physicians, researchers and parent advocates that believe that there is a link and those that think there is not, an ACTUAL debate on the merits of the arguement. Have your opponent right there to respond, rather than just having AAP and CDC issue statements that they cannot be questioned on.

As a matter of fact Pamela Felice of The Educated Parent got in touch with Oprah earlier this year and asked for exactly that.

So if you are so inclined, I would encourage you to write to the Oprah show and let them know that you would like to see such a debate, not just Paul Offit and ECBT being given an hour to say whatever they want unchallenged, but an actual, equal time, debate.

Time and time again, those of us on this side of the debate have requested that CDC/AAP/those who deny the vaccine autism connection appear on TV alongside us to actually debate the issue, but apart from Larry King's program last spring with Jenny McCarthy, that request is pretty much universally turned down. And CDC would not even show up to sit next to AAP on Larry King. They just issued one of those damn statements to be read.

Is the topic of a vaccine/autism connection is of so little importance, and so little concern to the American public, that they can't spare one single person to show up and talk about it?

So we thank Ms. Pisani for being willing to participate in this public debate. Let Oprah know that this is the debate that you have been waiting to see!

Dear Oprah,

I am the mother of a child who regressed into autism following his 18 month vaccinations. I have been reading and writing about the vaccine/autism connection for four years and believe that there is more than sufficient evidence to prove a link.

More importantly, apparently so does the Department of Health and Human Services as they have been quietly paying children with vaccine induced autism from the Vaccine Injury Compensation Fund for more than 15 years now, and they list the symptoms of autism under vaccine induced 'acute encephalopathy' on the VICP's web site. In addition, the head of the CDC, Julie Gerberding, went on CNN this spring and said that vaccines trigger autism in a subset of the population.

It is been incredibly frustrating to see advocates of the vaccine autism connection, like Jenny McCarthy, appear on national programs like yours to discuss it, and hear that CDC/HHS ubiquitously refuses to appear along side them and have an actual debate and be questioned on their claims. Instead they issue a statement to be read at the end of the show that they can never be questioned on.

Do they think that this is not an important enough issue for them to send one person to speak on their behalf? If the science is so sound that vaccines don't cause autism, then why are they so afraid to show up and be questioned on it?

However, it is my understanding that Amy Pisani of Every Child By Two has contacted the show and asked for an episode on the autism/vaccine connection, and I am writing to support her in her request. What this country needs is OPEN debate on this issue between physicians/researchers and parents on both sides on what the science really says, what the science is silent on, and who is overstating their case.

I think that Ms. Pisani has envisioned an hour for her and her experts (ECBT is funded by pharmaceutical companies) to extol the virtues of vaccines and ignore the questions and points that parents like me and our physicians would make, but honestly, that is pretty much what has been going on in this country for the last decade.

So instead, I hope you will consider Pamela Felice's request to your show from last spring:

With autism awareness month approaching in April and in light of the recent court ruling regarding Hannah Polling's vaccine related autism, I thought it might be interesting for Oprah to host a debate on the topic of vaccine safety.

Some suggested guests might include; David Kirby, author of Evidence of Harm, Dr. Robert Sears, Author of The Vaccine Book , Dr. Boyd Haley, head of the Chemistry Dept at Kentucky State University, Dr. Jerry Kertzinel, the DAN! Dr. treating Jenny McCarthy's son and Barbbra Lowe Fisher of the National Vaccine Information Ctr. on the Critic side.

Possible panelists who support the current vaccine program might include, Dr. Paul Offit, Dr. Julie Gerberding, Director of the CDC, a representative of the American
Academy of Pediatrics and/or a representative of Every Child By Two.

Personally, I would like to see Bernadine Healey expound on her understanding of the state of the research and why she is of the opinion that we can't no longer say that vaccines don't cause autism, or neurologist Jon Poling explain his understanding of the relationship between vaccine induced autism and undiagnosed mitochondrial disorders.

Thank you for your attention this vital issue.
Ginger Taylor, M.S.
AdventuresInAutism.com

Denis Leary Repeats the Savage Attack on Children with Autism

LEARY'S BRAIN VS. THE AUTISTICS

Page Six Photo
October 15, 2008 --

DENIS Leary should brace himself for hate mail from the parents of kids diagnosed with autism.

In his new book, "Why We Suck: A Feel-Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid," the joke-slinging "Rescue Me" star writes about the brain disorder:

"There is a huge boom in autism right now because inattentive mothers and competitive dads want an explanation for why their dumb-ass kids can't compete academically, so they throw money into the happy laps of shrinks . . . to get back diagnoses that help explain away the deficiencies of their junior morons. I don't give a [bleep] what these crackerjack whack jobs tell you - yer kid is NOT autistic. He's just stupid. Or lazy. Or both."

The Autism Society of America responded: "For Mr. Leary to suggest that families or doctors conspire to falsely diagnose autism is ridiculous . . . [His] remarks reflect the same misconceptions of autism being caused by bad or unemotional parenting that were held over 50 years ago."

Why does this hurt me so much?

You would think with all that we have to endure that Leary making some not so original or funny or even marginally informed rant would roll right off. But it doesn't. Because all I can think is that, while Michael Savage is widely considered to be a jerk, Leary is well liked (I like him) and his stupid words are going to incite someone one day to think that my son is just stupid and lazy and that his narcissistic parents should have paid more attention to him and use all that as an excuse to treat him like crap.

I am not even that mad at Leary. The unoriginalality of his comments, and the fact that he is just basically repeating himself comically (this being just being the most recent iteration of his 'I'm an asshole, you're an asshole, let's all drink and smoke and fight until we get cancer and die' shtick) makes me see this comment as not one from the heart (considering the comic has shown that he has a heart with all his charity work) but that he got stuck writing one night and had a deadline and decided to use our sick kids as filler.

The thing that has made Leary's insult comedy acceptable, is that, both in his standup and in his shows, it has always targeted people who actually were pretentious assholes, he has always included himself in the category of asshole, it has always been clear that his public persona is a product of his own self-loathing and that he was always willing to suffer the consequences insulting people. Because those pretentious assholes could, and would, fight back.

But now he has targeted sick children. (Worse, sick children who don't have the verbal acumen that he does to defend themselves.)

And the people I hold responsible for that is the medical profession that refuses to publicly identify children with autism as 'sick children'. I am sure Mr. Leary knows nothing about our kids inflammatory bowel disease, nothing about their neuro encepalopathy, nothing about their viral infections, nothing about their fungal infections, nothing about their autoimmune disorders, nothing about their mitochondrial dysfunction, nothing about their metal poisoning and nothing about the metabolic disorders associated with autism.

It is AAP and CDC's job to investigate illness and educate the public on said illnesses, but every time a health professional gets on TV and utters the ignorant words, "Mysterious disorder, no know cause or cure" they make one more Dennis Leary, one more Michael Savage, one more jerk that has decided that he is going to excoriate us lazy, stupid, negligent, selfish parents and teach us a lesson by giving us a public tongue lashing to whip us into shape.

And they allow this to go on and on, for more and more kids to get sick, for more families to have professional insulters add insult to our injury, for untold numbers of children miss out on interventions that would dramatically improve their lives, all so they can maintain the denial that they are causing most of this damage.

So to the AAP I say again... what is your plan?

How long are you going to let this go on? How many lives will you let be destroyed before you take responsibility for the damage your blind love affair with endless vaccination, antibiotics, psychotropics and Pharma money is doing to a generation of children and their families? Are you hoping for a full return to the Bettleheim era where autism moms all wear a scarlet "A" in public and you are completely exonerated at their expense? Or are you perhaps hoping to be able to up the ante and replace the phrase "Refrigerator Mother" with the phrase "Münchhausen Mother"?

Do you understand that this is the kind of thing that trickles down from your "Mysterious disorder, no know cause or cure" bullshit?

How bad are you going to let this get?!

And where is our Edward R. Murrow to ask AAP and CDC the question:

Have you no sense of decency?

As far as Leary goes, no need for me to shame him as he will probably be getting the message in many forms today about just how wrong he is. I hope that like Savage, someone reasoned and patient will give him the chance to learn what autism really is as Wendy Fournier of NAA did when got in touch to try educate him. I hope that unlike Savage, Leary will listen and realize how much potential damage his words can do to our children and take them back. But bottom line, he is a comic, so he is supposed to be a screwed up middle-aged man stuck in adolescence and saying whatever will get the class to stop what they are supposed to be doing and paying attention to him. And I am reasonably sure he would freely admit to that.

The source of this lie about our children begins with the AAP and the CDC (who are supposed to be the responsible grown-ups here) who will not acknowledge our children's medical problems, apologize for the part they had in creating them, and treat them.

Until they do, and until comics like Leary understand that our children are physically sick, be prepared to hear things like this every few months. And be prepared to have to fight back every time so we don't loose the ground we have gained.

Mr. Leary,

You are a funny and clever man and you have been grossly misinformed about our children. This comment was beneath you, both morally and comically. You have made me laugh for two decades now (I even saved your last two appearances on Craig Ferguson because you two are so damn funny together), but this rant was not not funny or clever or true. Not just was it stale and unfunny, worst of all, it was not just a benign failed joke. You are tearing down the work that mom's like me have been doing for the last fifty years to try to get doctors to properly examine and treat our kids by giving power to the falsehood that autism is the result of bad parenting.

In addition, when you paint autism parents as 'crackerjack whack jobs', you make it harder for me to get doctors to take my reports of his physical symptoms seriously and get my son the medical treatment he needs. Because contrary to your belief that there is some sort of collusion going on between parents and doctors, the opposite is true. Our pediatricians could not be less interested in our kids. We are begging them to actually physically examine our kids and treat their physical symptoms, rather than labeling them, slapping a bottle of ritalin on the counter and tucking them away in psychiatric treatment.

You have no idea how hard it is to parent a child with autism and do right by him. Please stop making my job harder.

This is about as hurtful to us, parents whose whole lives are wrapped up in healing our children and bringing them back from this miserable disorder, as it would be to you and those families you care about if someone of your prominence had said that the firemen that died in the WTC were too stupid, lazy and self-involved to dig their way out of the rubble after the building collapsed on them.

So I am going to wrap this up and get back to digging my son out from under the building that collapsed on him four years ago. I hope that you will take today and muster up some humility and listen to those who will be letting you know how they feel about what you have said about them and their children.

But before I go, let me introduce you to my son. This is Chandler Taylor, a little boy that you have called stupid and lazy and told him that he can't speak normally because his parents were not interested enough in him to make sure he could.



He is beautiful and valuable and loving and is so bright that he taught himself to read when he was three and can do third grade math. His life is hard and right now he is working his ass off to function in a first grade classroom with his typical peers. It crushes me that you would believe otherwise of him and teach people to see him as lazy and stupid.

Please stop.

Sincerely,
Ginger Taylor, M.S., A.M.

Hey You..... Go Follow Up On The Maloney Bill!

The plan for the day is to push for support for the Maloney Bill mandating a vaccinated v. unvaccinated study. Go read the AOA piece on it.

Louise Rocks Fox and Friends Today

Louise Kuo Habakus and Claudine Liss from the New Jersey Coalition for Vaccine Choice were on Fox and Friends today and did a wonderful job of explaining why forced vaccination is a bad idea.

For the record, I can't remember seeing Fox News do anything on the vaccine autism connection, so props to the ladies for getting this interview!

Don't forget the Vaccine Choice Rally on October 16th.

Court Rules That Atlanta Family Can Sue Wyeth for Vaccine Damage

And this is good.

Not just because this family will be able to exercise their rights, but more significantly for our community, that such a suit will include a beautiful thing called:

Discovery.

A large portion of what we learn about harmful products comes into the public forum, not because the companies immediately shared what they knew about the potential harm to the public from their product, as such disclosures tend to effect profits, but when they get sued and are forced to be honest under penalty of law.

One would like to believe that when it comes to the health and functioning of children, corporations would set aside market goals and fully disclose, but sadly history has not always born that out.

We already know that Wyeth's response to the SIDS outbreak caused by a hot lot of their vaccine in TN in 1979 was to change their policies so that no full lot went to one area so cases of damage or death would not be traced back to them. So I think we might learn some new things about Wyeth via the Ferrari’s suit.

Stay tuned to see what comes out of this next big case. It is probably going to the Supreme Court.

From the AJC:

High court: Atlanta couple can sue over vaccination
Marcelo and Carolyn Ferrari can take case to court over son’s disabilities
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Monday, October 06, 2008

An Atlanta couple’s lawsuit against vaccine manufacturers can go to trial on claims a childhood vaccine caused neurological damage to their young son, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled Monday.

In a landmark decision, the state high court unanimously ruled that Marcelo and Carolyn Ferrari’s lawsuit is not barred by the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Compensation Act. The court upheld a prior decision by the Georgia Court of Appeals, which was the first appellate court in the nation to make such a ruling.
Related links:

When the Ferraris’ 18-month-old son, Stefan, received his vaccines, he was a healthy verbal boy. Now 10, Stefan has not spoken since, according to court records.

A year after Stefan received his vaccines, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that thimerosal, a preservative used for multi-dose vaccine vials, be removed from childhood vaccines. The Ferraris filed suit, contending that the manufacturers should have made vaccines without the preservative before Stefan was vaccinated.

The companies argued that the 1986 vaccine act shields manufacturers from liability in civil lawsuits for damages caused by vaccines given after Oct. 1, 1988.

In Monday’s ruling, written by Justice George Carley, the state Supreme Court said the vaccine act “clearly does not preempt all design defect claims against vaccine manufacturers.”

Instead, it provides “that a vaccine manufacturer cannot be held liable for defective design if it is determined, on a case-by-case basis, that the injurious side effects of the particular vaccine were unavoidable,” the ruling said.

HT: AOA

More at Law.com:

Ga. Supreme Court Backs Vaccine Suit in Autism Case

Pharmalot:

Wyeth Can Be Sued For Thimerosal In A Vaccine

Mother Warriors

I am back. And so is Jenny.

She told her son's story and now she is telling our story. The story of moms who are fighting for their amazing children.

Go get it:


Her media appearances this week:

• Mon., Sept. 29th
Good Morning America - LIVE

• Tues., Sept. 30th
Canada AM - LIVE
CNN American Morning -LIVE

• Mon., & Tues., Sept 29th & 30th
Access Hollywood

• Thurs., Oct. 2nd
KTTV/Good Day LA

• Fri., Oct. 3rd
Ellen Degeneres

Congressional Vaccine-Autism Briefing - Call your Congressman!

If you don't see all your representatives on the list, call them first thing in the AM and ask them to attend.

If you do see your representatives on the list, call them and thank them for going and let them know how important this is to you.

FOR IMMEDATE RELEASE: September 23, 2008

CONTACT: Carlos Jimeno, 718-230-4250;
David Kirby 718-208-6883

VACCINE-AUTISM BRIEFING ON CAPITOL HILL TO DRAW MEMBERS OR STAFF FROM
125 HOUSE AND SENATE OFFICES
--Updates on Science, Policy, and Politics on the Agenda--

WASHINGTON, DC Rep. Carolyn Maloney (R-NY) will sponsor a special briefing on the vaccine-autism debate on Wednesday, September 24 at 2:00 PM in Room 210 of the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, DC.
David Kirby, investigative journalist and author of The New York Times bestseller “Evidence of Harm, Mercury in Vaccines and the Autism Epidemic A Medical Controversy,” will inform Members and their staff about developments in this debate from science, public policy, politics and law.Kirby will be joined Mark Blaxill, Director of the Coalition for SAFE MINDS.
Among the issues to be discussed are:
● A recent Vaccine Court case in which the federal government conceded that vaccines induced autism in one girl with an underlying mitochondrial dysfunction.
● Possible links between mitochondrial dysfunction and autistic regression, and information on several ASD children with mitochondrial issues;
● State-of-the-art research underway at top universities on the connection between environmental toxins, mitochondrial function, oxidative stress, glutathione depletion, neuro-inflammation and autistic encephalopathy;
● Research agendas from the CDC and NIH that include investigations into links between vaccines and neuro-immune disorders
● The scope and implications of the autism epidemic. How scientific politics is preventing policy from catching up to the problem.
● Ongoing research into connections between mercury exposure and autism. Why most of what is reported is inaccurate.
● Reframing concerns over the vaccine program: It’s not a question of being pro or con vaccines, but rather a question of safety management.
David Kirby and Mark Blaxill are available for interviews. More information is at www.evidenceofharm.com and www.safeminds.com

THERE ARE NOW 126 CONGRESSIONAL OFFICES CONFIRMED:

HOUSE

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)*
Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) Autism Caucus Co-Chair (“He read EOH cover to cover”)*
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA)
Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN)*
Rep. Tom Price (R-GA)
Rep. Christopher Carney (D-PA) (Will attend in person)*
Rep. Carney’s Health Care Legislative Aide
Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
Rep. Paul Brown (D-GA) (Will try to attend in person)
Rep. Michael McNulty (D-NY) (“Likely)*
Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY)*
Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)
Rep. Lincoln Davis (D-TN)*
Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-HI)*
Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH)
Rep. Charlie Wilson (D-OH)*
Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) (Will attend in person)*
Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA)*
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)*
Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA)*
Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN)*
Rep. John Duncan (R-TN) (Will try to attend in person)*
Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI)*
Rep. Robert Brady (D-PA)*
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ)*
Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA)*
Rep. Gene Green (D-TX)*
Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)*
Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI)*
Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA)*
Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI)*
Rep. John Kline (R-MN) ("They really want to be a part of this.")*
Rep. Mark Steven Kirk (R-IL)*
Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI)*
Rep. Sander Levin (D-MI)*
Rep. Mike Michaud (D-ME)*
Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ)
Rep. Phil English (R-PA)*
Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) (Most likely)*
Rep. Vito Fossella (R-NY) (Either in person or will send staff)*
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) (Very likely)*
Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (D-MI)*
Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA)*
Rep. Steven Lynch (D-MA)*
Rep. Louie Gohmert (D-TX)
Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY) (“Will try”)
Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT)*
Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA) (In person or a staffer will be there)*
Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY)*
Rep. John McHugh (R-CA)*
Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA)*
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) (“Will make every attempt possible”)*
Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC)*
Rep. Jo Bonner (R-AL)
Rep. Gresham Barrett (R-SC)
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA)
Rep. Rush Holt (NJ) (“Will try to attend in person, or else send staff rep”)*
Rep. Virgil Goode (R-VA)*
Rep. John Barrow (D-GA) (“Will attend in person, pending events that day”)
Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-MA) (“Will try to send someone”)*
Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO) (“Staffer will most likely attend”)*
Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)*
Rep Van Hollen (D-MD)
Rep.Jim Moran (D-VA) (“We are ALL very interested in this issue.”)*
Rep. Chip Pickering (R-MS) (“Congressman Pickering is passionate about this issue.”)*
Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) (“Staffer will most likely be there.”)*
Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) (“Staffer will probably be present.”)*
Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN)*
Rep. John Peterson (R-PA)*
Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA)*
Rep. John P. Murtha (D-PA)*
Rep. David Price (D-NC)*
Rep. Adam Putnam (R-FL)*
Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-LA)
Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY)*
Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA) “Staffer will probably be present”*
Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-CA)*
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI)*
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) (“Will do their best to get a staffer there”)*
Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX)*
Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA) (“Will try their best to have someone there”)*
Rep. Tom Bishop (D-NY) (“It’s on his schedule”)
Rep. Nick Rahall (D-WV)*
Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI)*
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS)*
Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-OH) (“Will do their best”)*
Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) (“Will do their best”)*
Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN) (“Will be there in person along with his health staffer”)*
Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH) (“Will try to attend”)
Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY)*
Rep. Dave Weldon (R-FL) (“Will try to be there in person, if not a staffer go”)*
Rep. David Wu (D-OR)*
Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC)
Rep. Virginia Brown-Waite (R-FL)
Rep. Niki Tsongas (D-MA)
Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) (“Will attend in person or send a staff person”)*

SENATE

Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) (“Likely”)
Sen. John Isakson (R-GA)*
Sen. Thad Cochrane (R-MI) (“Will try”)
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)*
Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA)*
Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN)
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN)
Sen. Robert Casey (D-PA)
Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL)
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) (“Will try to send someone”)*
Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA)
Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)
Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND)
Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI)
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)
Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN)
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) (“Health staffer will try”)
Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-SC)
Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD)
Sen. John Thune (R-SD) (“Staff person will try to attend”)
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY)*
Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) (“Will try to have health staffer attend”)*
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA)
Sen Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC)
Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) (“Will try”)
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA)

HOUSE: 96
SENATE: 30
DEM: 76
GOP: 50

ALSO ATTENDING:

Kate Mevis - FDA

* Denotes a member of the 2007 2008 Coalition for Autism Research and Education (Autism Caucus) of the 110th Congress.

Jenny on Oprah Talking about "Warrior Moms"

Heads up.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, Jenny McCarthy will be on Oprah.

Special Needs Issues and the Presidency Hitting Mainstream Discussion

Trig Palin's story is safe ground for the Republican ticket

Biden's comments on special needs kids called 'new low'

One mom's comment: "Wouldn't you just love to see these two campaigns to get into a battle over who cares more about children with special needs?"

USAAA: American Medical Autism Board Launched

Up until now there has been no certification process for docs treating autistic children via biomed. Just the DAN! list.

Today USAAA announces the creation of a certification board:

American Medical Autism Board Launched
First of its kind board / diplomate certification program for autism spectrum disorders

Cleveland, OH - Dr. Phillip C. DeMio, Chairman of the American Medical Autism Board, announced the commencement of the newly founded American Medical Autism Board (www.asdboards.org) at the US Autism & Asperger Association annual conference this past week in Austin, Texas. “This is the first of its kind board / diplomate certification program for medical doctors specializing in biomedical treatment of autism and related disorders,” explained Dr. DeMio.

“Medical doctors who become certified by the American Medical Autism Board (AMAB) show that they specialize in biomedical treatment of autism spectrum disorders, and will have met the Board's high levels of criteria for training and experience, and will have passed its rigorous certification examination,” said Dr. DeMio. “The biomedical concept means that autism and the autism spectrum disorders are not primary psychiatric or behavioral disorders, rather they are medical diseases with a biologic basis to their cause and to their ongoing manifestations (such as pain, gastrointestinal problems, and immune dysfunction).”

AMAB board-certified members provide biomedical evaluation and/or treatment to individuals of all ages diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, Asperger's syndrome, AD/HD, OCD, and PDD's. Through its credentialing process, AMAB offers both the public and private sectors an avenue for identifying well-qualified professionals trained and experienced in the biomedical assessment and treatment of autism spectrum disorders.

Thousands of families that have an affected child will now have access to certified specialists in biomedical autism treatments; verification that AMAB physicians are up to date on the newest treatments and research;
dedication to high quality patient care; and, verification of exceptional knowledge, experience, and skills in their specialty.

About American Medical Autism Board
The American Medical Autism Board® (AMAB) is an independent non-profit incorporated certifying organization. The mission of the American Medical Autism Board is to promote safe, ethical, efficacious medical autism treatment to the public by maintaining high standards for the examination and certification of physicians as autism medical specialists. The mission of AMAB is to contribute to understanding the etiology diagnosis, and treatment of autism spectrum disorders, with the goal of improving the lives of affected individuals and their loved ones.

Contact information:
information@asdboards.com
www.asdboards.org