Reprinted from NAA announcement.

• Parents are encouraged to attend the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting at the CDC on February 21st and 22nd in Atlanta, Georgia.
• Thimerosal is scheduled to be discussed on February 21st at 10:55 am.
• Your letters and/or testimony to the committee will be hand-delivered if you cannot attend and NAA will feature some of these on their web site
• Parents located in the Atlanta area are encouraged to gather friends and other parents to attend.
• Please be a voice for your child and all children affected by Thimerosal.
• Committee members may discuss a preference for Thimerosal-free flu vaccines.
• You will have a chance to speak before the committee during the public comment segment at 2:45 pm.

DESPITE MULTIPLE REQUESTS, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THEY HAVE PUT THIMEROSAL ON THE AGENDA IN SEVERAL YEARS, which makes this ACIP meeting the most critical yet. The entire committee needs to hear from you and as many other parents as possible.

Children and fetuses are still being exposed daily to this neurotoxin. Thimerosal has been in the shots long enough—and what we say to the committee could make a difference. To date, they have flatly refused to state a preference for thimerosal-free vaccines to be given to pregnant women and children. With the recently added recommendations for influenza vaccines to be given to women during any stage of pregnancy and children from age 6 months and up, the amount of thimerosal exposure through recommended vaccines has increased drastically in the last 2 years.

Feel free to mail your letters directly to the committee at the address below, if you cannot attend. If you prefer, you may email them to us and we will make sure they are hand-delivered to the committee. Email: naa@nationalautism.org.

You can include your personal story and any labs that demonstrate mercury toxicity in your child. You may also print and send the ads below.

MEETING INFORMATION:
Date/Time of Visit: February 21-22, 2007 from 7:00a.m. – 6:00p.m.
Meeting Location: CDC, Building 19, Room 232
Visitor Entry Point: Visitor’s Center
CDC Contact: Dee Gardner, 404-639-8836,
DGardner@cdc.gov
Meeting Contact: Judy Rayburn, Building 19
Purpose of Visit: To attend the ACIP Meeting

ADDRESS: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
1600 Clifton Road, NE
Building 19, Room 232, Auditorium B
Atlanta, Georgia 30333

MEETING AGENDA: http://www.cdc.gov/nip/ACIP/agendas.htm

REGISTRATION:
Register online at http://www2.cdc.gov/nip/ACIP/ februaryRegistration.asp

Washington, Feb 8, 2008 - U.S. Reps. Dave Weldon, M.D. (R-FL) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) today reintroduced H.R. 881, The Mercury Free Vaccines Act of 2007. As an increasing number of studies raise concerns about mercury exposure and the body’s inability to eliminate mercury, the Weldon- Maloney bill aims to virtually eliminate such exposure from vaccines.

In 1999, the Public Health Service and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended the removal of thimerosal from child vaccines. Eight years later, thimerosal (50% mercury) still remains in some childhood vaccines – particularly the flu shot. Over the past two years, the CDC has significantly expanded the pediatric flu vaccine recommendations, significantly increasing the exposure of infants and children to mercury containing vaccines.

“While the FDA warns pregnant women about eating fish known to be high in mercury, the CDC is encouraging pregnant women to get a mercury-laced flu shot. It’s long overdue that we ban the practice of injecting mercury into humans in general and infants and pregnant women in particular,” said Weldon, a physician. “Today’s bill sets in place a date by which mercury must be removed from all vaccines. Years of encouraging the CDC, vaccine manufacturers, and public health officials to completely remove mercury have been ignored. Perhaps the force of law is the only way to guarantee what is long overdue.”

"It's a simple concept: kids shouldn't be given anything that's toxic. The pharmaceutical industry is starting to get the mercury out, but we need to know that it’s gone without any doubt," said Maloney.

Mercury is a neurotoxin and is harmful to the developing central nervous system of fetuses and infants. The EPA found that 1-in-6 infants are born with a blood mercury level exceeding the level considered safe by the EPA.

The Legislation:

• Requires that beginning with the 2007/08 flu season, the flu shots for children under age three and pregnant women may not contain more than 1 microgram (mcg) of mercury;
• Requires that beginning with the 2008/09 flu season, the flu shots for children under age six and pregnant women may not contain more than 1mcg of mercury;
• Requires by July 1, 2008, all other routinely administered childhood vaccines, may not contain more than 1mcg of mercury, and on Jan 1, 2009, all pediatric, adolescent and adult vaccines that contain more than 1mcg of mercury are banned;
• Expresses the Sense of the Congress that the CDC should incorporate into its vaccine promotion messages, a recommendation against administering a mercury-containing vaccine to pregnant women.

Similar legislation is also expected to be introduced in the Senate in coming weeks.

Prior to the convening of the expert panel to review and evaluate progress made to date regarding the 2003 Autism Research Matrix, representatives from SafeMinds and the National Autism Association (NAA) met with Dr. Thomas Insel and his staff concerning the proposed update. During the meeting, requests were made to expand the panel’s membership to include scientists and clinicians with expertise in environmental factors and biomedical interventions, as well as and representatives from advocacy groups. Subsequent to these meetings a, SafeMinds and NAA submitted list of recommendations for environmental and biomedical treatment content areas for the panel’s review. In addition, SafeMinds and NAA also requested that an external panel, comprised of scientists, clinicians, and advocates, convene at least annually to review Matrix progress and revise goals and activities as warranted in light of new research and clinical findings. We deeply appreciate the efforts of Dr. Insel and his staff for taking the time to meet with us and for reviewing our recommendations for incorporation into the process of evaluating and updating the Autism Research Matrix.

Many of our requests regarding autism research at NIH were incorporated into Senate Bill 843, the Combating Autism Act of 2006 (CAA). The amended bill, as adopted and reported out of the House of Representatives and signed into law on December 19, 2006, reauthorizes the existing Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC). The accompanying CAA report language states, “The committee's far- reaching mandate will be to compose and annually report to Congress on a strategic plan for federal Autism activities and to make important recommendations to both Congress and the executive branch on ways to better coordinate and conduct federal autism-related activities. Further, this legislation increases the amount of public participation on the IACC from two individuals to at least six.” The report language continues by stating that “Public participation, especially among the parents and families of those affected by autism, is necessary to emphasize the human side of autism research and to ensure that federal resources are used wisely." CAA specifies that composition of the IACC will include no fewer than six members or one- third of the committee membership, whichever is greater, from outside the government. The act also notes that the IACC may recommend providing other formal mechanisms, such as an Autism Advisory Board, to provide public feedback and interaction. Given the passage of CAA SafeMinds and NAA respectfully request that the IACC implement the recommendations regarding the establishment of an Autism Advisory Board.

Additionally, the legislation states that "The Director of NIH shall, subject to the availability of appropriations, expand, intensify, and coordinate the activities of the National Institutes of Health with respect to research on autism spectrum disorder, including basic and clinical research in fields including pathology, developmental neurobiology, genetics, epigenetics, pharmacology, nutrition, immunology, neuroimmunology, neurobehavioral development, endocrinology, gastroenterology, and toxicology.” Broadening the composition of the IACC committee, as well as the autism research matrix, into these areas of expertise and investigation is necessary to identify the biological underpinnings of autism spectrum disorders. Presently, IACC membership is composed primarily of representatives from federal agencies. Expansion into these additional areas of representation will facilitate broad based research initiatives, increasing NIH’s ability to positively impact the lives of those diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders.

Comments were divided into three sections:

• recommendations related to NIH guiding principles,
• specific recommendations related to the IACC research matrix, and
• a list of issues that serve as roadblocks to successfully implementing autism research.

Click here to read the full recommendations.

The SafeMinds and the National Autism Association announce their acceptance of the invitation to participate on the committee tasked with planning the upcoming April 18 – 19 Institute of Medicine's Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders workshop entitled, "Autism and the Environment: Challenges and Opportunities for Research." Our representatives, Laura Bono of NAA and Mark Blaxill of SafeMinds, will attend the planning committee sessions. Autism Speaks is also on the planning committee. SafeMinds and NAA will work closely with them to bring a unified community position to the planning process.

The workshop is being held at the request of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and will be hosted in collaboration with the IOM's Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research and Medicine. The primary focus will be the potential relationship between autism and an array of environmental exposures and will feature presentations and discussions on strategies for research.

Our representatives will continue to put forth the concerns of our community while working with other committee members to leave no stone unturned in the quest for the causes of the autism epidemic, with the ultimate goal of providing meaningful treatments for all those affected.

This workshop is a public meeting with opportunities for public input, both formal and informal. The planning committee invites the public’s comments and suggestions. We encourage the autism community to provide strong and constructive suggestions. Please forward all suggestions and comments in writing to the planning committee at the following email address: neuroforum@nas.edu.

SafeMinds is currently looking for volunteers to help out with a variety of tasks. Are you interested in serving on an event committee? We are looking for people in Atlanta, Southern California and the Boston area to help plan and support 2007 fundraising events in these areas. We are also looking for people who would like to help staff booths at local and national autism conferences. Do you have another talent you think we can use?

Please contact us if you are interested in helping.