Mark Green, a Republican who's nearing to becoming a Tennessee congressman, has made quite an eyebrow-raising claim on Tuesday, saying he believe that vaccines do cause autism.
The claim is one that's been resounding for quite some time, which does not only affect the decision-making of parents, but also affected the effectiveness of the campaigns championed by federal health agencies. Adding to the naysayers is Green, a physician and a congressman-elect in Tennessee, who explained his beliefs on the link of autism and vaccines to his constituents on Tuesday.
CDC 'Managed' Data
"I have committed to people in my community, up in Montgomery County, to stand on the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's] desk and get the real data on vaccines. Because there is some concern that the rise in autism is the result of the preservatives that are in our vaccines," Green said.
What's more alarming is that Green accused that the CDC "fraudulently managed" the data. The statement came after a woman who said she has an autistic child expressed concerns over the possible budget cut on Medicaid. Furthermore, the soon-to-be congressman seemed to have challenged the health agency, saying that he can engage in an argument by looking at it "academically."
Retraction Of Data
However, a day after his controversial statement, Green said his statements were misunderstood and explained that his children were vaccinated. He went on to say that he urges parents to have their kids immunized.
In another statement, Green said he was merely pertaining to the House discussions about vaccines and autism in 2015, when Rep. Bill Posey opened up the possibility. Lastly, he hoped for better research and "transparency of any data."
Anti-vaccine Movement
Anti-vaccine movement has been doing its best in reiterating the supposed link of autism and vaccines, citing a 1998 study that used fake data. The author of the research later on withdrew the statements and the license was revoked, but that didn't stop other people from embracing the claims.
Since then, the government has been on a fight to combat the spread of fake news, which have been rampant on social media. As per CDC's report, the number of unvaccinated children below 2 years old ballooned to four times in the past 17 years.
CDC has steadfastly refuted malicious claims and used a lot of research to prove that there is no connection between vaccines and autism.
