Vaccines with mercury get temporary OK

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http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/news/state/15918918.htm

Vaccines with mercury get temporary OK

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Citing a shortage of flu vaccines for young children, the

California Department of Health and Human Services said Thursday it would

make an exception to a new law requiring mercury-free vaccines.

A law banning a mercury-based preservative called thimerosal from vaccines

given to pregnant women and children younger than 3 years old took effect

this year, backed by lobbying from public health groups that say mercury is

linked to autism.

But only one manufacturer, Sanofi Pasteur, produces the vaccine that

complies with California's law, and the company has experienced a delay in

shipments this year, creating a supply shortage.

So on Thursday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kim Belshe agreed to

suspend the requirement for six weeks.

The ban, authored by Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, and signed

into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2004, can be suspended during

times of short supply.

Belshe said the administration is still committed to ensuring mercury-free

vaccines.

''However, the health threat that seasonal influenza presents is severe and

all too often deadly,'' she said. ''We feel it is important to offer this

short-term alternative.''

She noted the appeal by the American Academy of Pediatrics, California

Medical Association, California Academy of Family Physicians and Kaiser

Permanente.

''These groups, representing physicians who care for children, have

well-founded concerns that some parents do not have the option to delay

vaccination because of personal barriers, like access to transportation,''

Belshe said.