[NVIC] Autism & vaccines: Welfare disaster.

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E-NEWS FROM THE NATIONAL VACCINE INFORMATION CENTER Vienna, Virginia

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WAY/COMBINED FEDERAL CAMPAIGN #8122 * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_evelyn_p_060418_autism___worst_welfa

htm Opednews.com April 18, 2006 Autism - Worst Welfare Disaster In History

by Pringle http://www.opednews.com Scientist and medical experts

say that unless the government forces the pharmaceutical industry to pay for

the damage caused by mercury-laced vaccines, in the not too distant future,

Americans will experience the worst welfare disaster in the history of this

country. No doubt with that in mind, eight members of Congress are calling

for a

new investigation into the link between the autism epidemic and the

mercury-based preservative, thimerosal, that children received in vaccines

during the 1990s, and that some children received as late as 2003. After six

years of hearings, and testimony from medical experts, scientists, special

education teachers, school nurses, and parents of autistic children, several

lawmakers say they are convinced that a review of the vaccine database will

show a causal link between autism and thimerosal. Throughout the 1990s, when

thimerosal was most heavily used, the number of children diagnosed with

autism reached epidemic proportions. During this period, the levels of

mercury that children received were 120 times greater than safety standards

set for oral ingestion of mercury in food, according to the lawmakers. In

1999, public health officials began asking vaccine-makers to eliminate the

preservative from childhood vaccines. But seven years

later, word got out that the preservative is still in the flu vaccine

recently added to the childhood immunization schedule, and parents, medical

experts, and scientists are outraged. In seeking an independent review, the

lawmakers basically told the Centers for Disease Control to butt out. They

maintain that previous research conducted by the agency is flawed because it

" was based on data collected prior to the removal of thimerosal and failed to

explicitly compare the outcome of children who received thimerosal-containing

vaccines with those who did not, " they said. The group has also criticized

the Institute of Medicine for its 2004 public announcement that there is no

link between vaccines and autism, because the conclusion for the most part,

was based on European studies, when American children had been injected with

75% higher levels of mercury than the European children in the studies were

exposed to. In March 2006, the lawmakers

sent a letter to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences,

asking their agency to conduct a study of the CDC’s Vaccine Safety Datalink,

which contains records on 7 million children vaccinated since 1990. “If

the federal government is going to have a study whose results will be broadly

accepted, such a study cannot be led by the CDC, " the lawmakers wrote in the

letter. Although the debate over the cause of autism may rage on

indefinitely, the rising costs to society of caring for and educating the

children afflicted with the disorder can not be ignored. On January 4,

2005, the Government Accountability Office advised the Subcommittee on Human

Rights and Wellness Committee on Government Reform, that the average per

pupil cost for educating a child with autism was estimated to be over $18,000

during the 1999-2000 school year, the most recent year in which data were

available at the time of the report. That means that six

years ago, the GAO’s estimate for educating autistic children was nearly 3

times the cost of educating a normal student. The amount of money needed to

educate autistic children is the highest per pupil cost for children

receiving special ed services. The epidemic does not discriminate, its

happening in every state in the nation, due to the fact that under the

mandatory vaccine schedule, children in every state received the same

mercury-laced vaccines. From December 1998 to December 2002, the autism

population in California’s Developmental Services System nearly doubled and

the 97% increase in 4 years did not include children less than 3, persons

classified with less common forms of autism, or persons who are suspected of

having autism but are not yet diagnosed. The total number of autistic

students served statewide increased from 10,360 in December 1998 to 20,377 in

December 2002. Over the last 6 years, the state of Ohio experienced

more than a 1,000% increase in students with autism, with 5,406 reported cases

for the 2003-2004 school year, according to the Ohio Legislative Office Of

Education Oversight. This year, the Pennridge School District in

Pennsylvania, expects to only receive about $1 million in federal funding,

and only $2.8 million from the state, to cover its $11 million special ed

budget. This means about 60% of the total cost will have to be paid by local

taxpayers. In recent years, the average age of autistic children entering the

school system has shifted to much younger children. Under federal law, public

schools must provide appropriate education for all children with disabilities,

starting at age 3, and many autistic children remain in the system until age

21. For very young children, the recommendation for early intervention has

created an increased demand for more intensive behavioral therapy and

educational services in general. However, the

federal government only partially reimburses the states for the cost of

educating autistic children, even though early intervention means that the

services required for each child must now be provided for a much longer

period of time. And on the other hand, as more autistic children reach late

adolescence, the need for out-of-home residential services is beginning to

have a heavy impact on state budgets. There is also an increase in public

health care costs associated with the growing number of autistic children.

For instance, according to state government records, South Carolina has an

estimated 2000 children under the age of 18 with autism, and the great

majority of these children are eligible for at least some services covered by

Medicaid. During the fiscal year 2005, according to the Department of Health

and Human Services, South Carolina paid out more than $20 million for autism

care, in large part, because most insurance companies

do not cover the high cost of the specific therapies that have been found to

be the most successful in treating children with autism. A group of South

Carolina lawmakers are trying to pass a bill that would require private

insurers to cover services for all autism patients regardless of age. Industry

lobbyist, Larry Marchant says that if passed, the bill would cause the health

insurance premiums that individuals or families pay to increase 25%, and would

average out to an extra $200 a month for those enrolled in family plans,

according to State.com on March 26, 2006. In addition, the financial burden

that a disorder like autism takes on families is absolutely devastating. Upon

becoming autistic after receiving vaccines at 16 months, Bono says her

son, " 's medical and therapy needs began taking every bit of money we

had saved or ever would have saved. " " The total we have paid for 's

medical, nutritional and private

therapy expenses so far, " says, " is roughly $685,000 since August 1990. "

That amount averages out to well over $50,000 a year. There is no escaping

the fact that the epidemic is having a profound impact on society; not only

on autistic children and their families, but on our public health care

programs and school systems as well. And, until vaccine-makers are held

accountable, taxpayers will continue to carry the full burden.

Pringle evelyn.pringle@...

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