US CDC says claims that vaccines do not cause autism are not evidence-based [View all]

Source: Reuters

US CDC says claims that vaccines do not cause autism are not evidence-based

By Reuters
November 20, 2025 12:33 AM EST Updated 5 hours ago

Nov 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its website on Wednesday to say that claims about vaccines not causing autism are not "evidence-based."

Vaccine skeptic and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as well as U.S. President Donald Trump have promoted the theory - contrary to scientific evidence - that childhood vaccines are a cause of autism. But the CDC's website previously said "studies have shown there is no link between receiving vaccines and developing autism spectrum disorder."

As of Wednesday night the agency's website states: "The claim 'vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim because studies have not ruled out the possibility that infant vaccines cause autism." It added that health authorities have "ignored" studies supporting the link between the two.

The agency kept the header "Vaccines do not cause autism" on its web page, saying that it has not been removed due to an agreement with Senator Bill Cassidy, chairman of the U.S. Senate's Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

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Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal in Bengaluru and Michael Erman in New Jersey; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-cdc-says-claims-that-vaccines-do-not-cause-autism-are-not-evidence-based-2025-11-20/

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/11/20/cdc-vaccines-autism-website-change/

Under RFK Jr., CDC promotes false vaccines-autism link it once discredited

The CDC’s website now says health authorities ignored evidence of a potential connection between vaccines and autism, despite dozens of studies showing no link.

November 20, 2025 at 12:30 a.m. EST Today at 12:30 a.m. EST
5 min

A sign at the entrance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters in Atlanta. (Miguel Martinez/AP)

By Lena H. Sun
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has repudiated its past insistence that vaccines do not cause autism after decades of fighting misinformation linking the two, blindsiding career staff and delighting anti-vaccine activists.

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The comments express strong criticism and concern over the CDC's recent changes to their website regarding the vaccines-autism link. Many commenters highlight the influence of political pressure, particularly from the Trump administration and RFK Jr., in promoting pseudoscience...