By J.B. Handley
I often talk about the "autism net", the concept that the ranks of parents impacted by the autism epidemic grows every day. With each person added to the net, the chances of someone being added with the power and connections to do something about it grows.
Meet Dr. Gary Kompothecras: he's one of those parents. Based in Sarasota, Florida, he appears to be a one-man wrecking crew doing many of the things all of us wish we could.
Consider this excerpt from an article that ran yesterday in his local paper, the Herald Tribune of Sarasota, FL. (HERE)
"Dirt bags!" he says, throwing up his arms in a conference room in his office. "It's a cover-up. They're killing kids."
Gary Kompothecras, who likes to be called Dr. Gary, is a chiropractor who acknowledges that, if you cross him, he can be a bulldog. He made himself a multi-millionaire building clinics to treat people hurt in car accidents and by creating the 1-800-ASK-GARY referral network. He is also one of the state's biggest political donors and a close friend of Gov. Charlie Crist.
Two of his children are autistic. Sarah Alice, 11, repeats back what other people say to her and still plays with a jack-in-the-box. Bronson, 12, is so severely delayed he spent years in therapy to learn the name of his favorite plaything, bottles.
Kompothecras (pronounced kom-PAHTH-uh-kras) believes their disorder was caused by an ingredient in vaccines, mercury-based thimerosal, that they received as infants.
"Dirt bags" is one of the nicer names he has for public health officials who disagree.
This legislative session Kompothecras wants lawmakers to pass a law preventing any vaccines with more than a tiny amount of thimerosal from being given in Florida, creating what would be the nation's strictest vaccine law.
Pediatricians say the legislation, which essentially amounts to a ban on the preservative, is rooted in bad science and will put children and the elderly at risk for deadly flu viruses. The one shot containing a substantial amount of thimerosal is the flu vaccine, and if the preservative is restricted there could be a shortage, medical experts warn.
But Kompothecras is relentless. He promises to leverage every political favor and every dollar he can to get the law passed.
"If I can do this, my son won't go down for nothing," Kompothecras said. "You know how many lives we're going to save? This is going to be bigger than tobacco."
* * *
I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Gary today. He's one of us, he gets it, he's hopping mad, and he can make things happen. He appreciates how important looking at unvaccinated kids is, and he's currently moving to do just that in Florida. From the article:
"Working for a vaccine law is just the beginning for Kompothecras. He wants to commission a study using the state's Medicaid database looking at children who received thimerosal-containing vaccines and at how many became autistic."
Dr. Gary is a member of the Florida Governor's Autism Task Force. To that end, he put together a 46 minute video of a hearing on the thimerosal bill in September of 2008. The video includes excellent testimony by the Geiers, Dr. David Berger, and Dr. Boyd Haley (And some great questions from Ven Sequenzia, Jr., the President of the Autism Society of Florida). While it's long, I highly recommend you watch it HERE (HERE).
(Checkout minute number 25, where the Florida Department of Health speaker, Saad Omer, gets shredded, and minute 35 where Boyd Haley explains the extreme toxicity of mercury. And, minute 38 where a mom gets the Florida Department of Health loser to admit they have no studies on the safety of simultaneous administration of vaccines. And, minute 39 where Dr. Gary trips up the Department of Health loser by quoting Dr. Healy!!)
Our kids need more Warrior Dads. In Dr. Gary, they have one who we will be hearing a lot more from soon. Welcome, Dr. Gary, we’re thrilled to stand shoulder to shoulder with you in the fight.
What great news during an otherwise tough week! But then, showing some spine is pretty much what you'd expect from a chiropractor.
Posted by: sign lady | February 18, 2009 at 10:06 PM
Chiropractors rock...they know the truth, they see the truth..God Bless Dr Gary...
And I love treatments...I don't do it often, but it feels SOOO good, and helps our kids from wetting beds...big hint...
Posted by: Kathy Blanco | February 18, 2009 at 02:34 PM
Dr. Omer will be shoulder to shoulder with Offit leading the charge to restrict vaccine exemptions and access to public schools.
Selected Publications Dr. Saad Omer
http://faculty.jhsph.edu/Default.cfm?faculty_id=972
Omer, SB, Salmon DA, Orenstein WA, deHart MP, Halsey NA. Vaccine Refusal, Mandatory Immunization, and Risk of Vaccine Preventable Diseases in the United States. In press. New England Journal of Medicine. Omer SB, Enger KS, Moulton LH, Halsey NA, Stokley S, Salmon DA.
*********
Geographical Clustering of Nonmedical Exemptions to School Immunization Requirements and its Associations with Geographical Clustering of Pertussis Cases. In Press. American Journal of Epidemiology (2008).
***************
Vaccinations' benefits proved; enforce the law
By Mike King
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
http://www.ajc.com/services/content/opinion/stories/2008/10/29/vaccinesed.html
**********************
Vaccination law not enforced for many kids
Schools allowing enrollment without proof of immunization
By ALISON YOUNG
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Thousands of metro Atlanta children were allowed to enroll and remain in school last year without proof of required vaccinations, in violation of state law.
Even though the vaccination law is a cornerstone in the protection of public health, some school principals ignore it and some health department officials do little to enforce it....
...In 2009, the state (GA) will begin examining school-level data using a new Internet-based reporting system in the works since March....
....Enforcement of vaccination laws is essential to prevent outbreaks, said Dr. Lance Rodewald, CDC director of immunization services.
Parents' concerns about vaccine safety and fear that vaccines may be a cause of autism — though unsupported by studies cited by the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics — have prompted a small but growing number to question school vaccination requirements and in some cases obtain exemptions.
But exemptions are rarely used by Georgia parents, the AJC's review of school audits shows.
At College Park Elementary, only 29 percent of its 57 kindergartners were in compliance last fall, records show. Although the law says such children should be barred from the classroom, they aren't, said principal Gretchen Thornton.
"I can't do that. Our business is to educate children," she said. "The bottom line is, it isn't the child's fault if they don't have the document."
Georgia law says parents who fail to comply and school officials who allow noncompliant children to remain in school are guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to fines and jail time. But neither school officials nor parents are ever prosecuted.
Posted by: Kevin Barry | February 18, 2009 at 12:37 PM
Ah, now I know why Dr. Gary Kampothecras lives in Florida. Its to save all those Florida ASD kids from the crap they get from the school system and the public.
For some reason, Florida ASD kids are always in the news!!
Posted by: Thank you Dr. Gary | February 18, 2009 at 10:49 AM