AGE OF AUTISM

PAUL OFFIT'S ROTATEQ CAUSES DEATH BY INTUSSUSCEPTION

There is no joy in this report.

Somewhere, a family is grieving the loss of a child. The FDA has announced today that a death by intussusception has been reported by Merck, maker of Dr. Paul Offit's RotoTeq vaccine.  You may recall that the last Rotovirus vaccine was pulled a decade ago for the same reason. The only reports we can find so far are from stock market sites.

OLMSTED ON AUTISM: AMISH. VACCINATED. AUTISTIC.

BY DAN OLMSTED

Lisa Jo Rudy, the New York Times-owned about.com autism guide, wrote late last week that "if you read this blog regularly, you'll know that we've been having a very active conversation about the Amish and autism." No kidding!

I think that was more or less my doing, as I took exception to a piece she wrote – headlined "Do The Amish Vaccinate? Indeed They Do, AND Their Autism Rates May Be Lower."

But forget what Lisa said or what I said about what she said. That's not what this column is about. It's about what the Amish -- and those who know their ways and world -- have to say.

Look at the photo to the left, of a 9-year-old Old Order Amish child and her special ed teacher. This child's parents want people to know their never-vaccinated daughter was taken away from them at age 1, immunized at the Clinic For Special Children (more about them later), and returned a year later with full-syndrome, non-genetic, no-doubt-about-it autism (professionally diagnosed). That's why, contrary to Amish tradition, they let me take her photo. They are mad. They are heartbroken. This is not a study. This is not "a very active discussion about the Amish and autism." This is their child. And they believe vaccinations pushed her over into something they had never seen, something called autism. As people say: Get the picture? I'll show a video of her at Autism One, along with another Amish child whose parents believe she was vaccine damaged, but frankly I'm tired of the crap about how I make stuff up, get things wrong and never even visit the Amish, so the time has come.

NVAC ROUND TWO

By Kelli Ann Davis

Approximately two weeks ago, the National Vaccine Advisory Committee (NVAC) Vaccine Safety Working Group (VSWG) met in DC to discuss CDC’s ISO Scientific Agenda and the federal vaccine safety system. 

Several pieces were written in follow up to the meeting (Lisa Randall; David Kirby DHHS transcript; CDC Doesn't Test Simultaneous Vaccinations) and in my piece (HERE) I asked the community to make calls and send e-mails to the Director of the National Vaccine Program Office (NVPO) in an effort to place Mark Blaxill of Safeminds onto the VSWG.

CONFUSED PARENTS TO BLAME FOR FALLING VAX RATES

From ABC Go, the full article is HERE.

Fewer children in the United States are getting the immunizations they need, putting themselves and others at much greater risk of contracting and spreading vaccine-preventable diseases, new research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests.

Here's the new spin. You, silly parents, are too confused to know how to create a vaccine schedule.  That's why you're out of compliance. Last I checked, the AAP vaccine schedule is not an a la carte menu.

AUTISM MERCURY EMISSIONS DALLAS PRESS CONFERENCE

From SafeMinds and Autism United:

Texas Study finds Autism Incidence Increased by
Mercury Emissions from Coal Plants and Other Polluters

Lead author from University of Texas to brief media:

WHAT:  Press conference and rally on a newly published study titled “Proximity to point sources of environmental mercury release as a predictor of autism prevalence” appearing in the journal Health & Place (Elsevier).

WHEN:  11 a.m. Central, Wednesday, April 30th

THE "EVER-EXCITABLE" WRITER GETS EXCITED!

By Kent Heckenlively, Esq.

It’s been said that to know who you really are you need to find out who your enemies are and what they say about you.

With some amusement I recently Googled myself and autism to see what came up.  I found that some claim I’m a “rabid anti-vaccinationist” and one blogger in particular referred to me as “the ever-excitable Kent Heckenlively.”

This particular blogger goes by the screen-name “Hacklehead” and after his nom de guerre has written the following motto, “Crush the liberals, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentation of the hippies.”  I guess he didn’t want people to get him confused with all of those namby-pamby Hackleheads.

WINNER GROWING UP GREEN CONTEST

Tara is the winner of the signed copy of "Growing Up Green" by Deirdre Imus. Tara, please send me an email at Kim Stagliano at gee mail dot com with your mailing address.

Congratulations!

WSJ TACKLES SPECIAL NEEDS COSTS

The Wall Street Journal ran a terrific article on a problem we all face: juggling the costs associated with treating our kids.  Read the full article HERE.

On a recent drive home from a party, my wife, Amy, asked our soon-to-be 5-year-old daughter who she had played with. With tears in her eyes, our little girl responded that no one had played with her, because, as she told Amy, "they don't understand me."

NIH INVITATION TO CALIFORNIA AUTISM ADVOCATES

ATTENTION: CA Parents/Caregivers/Clinicians

YOU ARE INVITED!

NIH wants YOUR opinion on what is needed in autism research!

The NIH Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) cordially invites parents who are affiliated with SafeMinds, the National Autism Association (NAA), the Autism Research Institute and Defeat Autism Now!, the M.I.N.D. Institute, FEAT, TACA, Generation Rescue, Autism Society of America and any other local or national groups chapters to a Town Hall Meeting. The meeting is free and open to the public. Advance registration is not required. 

NASSAU COUNTY NEW YORK VACCINE SAFETY PRESS CONFERENCE

David Kirby has been asked to speak at today's event. Here's the press release:

NASSAU COUNTY TO BECOME FIRST MUNICIPALITY IN THE NATION TO HEAR CONCERNS ABOUT SAFETY OF VACCINES AND ITS LINK TO AUTISM BY PARENTS/ SPECIAL PRESS CONFERENCE MONDAY APRIL 28, 2008