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 SafeMinds Press Room
NEW JERSEY POISED TO INJECT MERCURY INTO CHILDREN UNNECESSARILY December 10, 2007 - The New Jersey Public Health Council has adopted a mandate to add 4 new vaccinations for New Jersey's school children. The influenza and meningitis vaccine, named in the mandate, continues to be marketed in the United States in versions containing 25 mcg of mercury (thimerosal), a level far above EPA safety limits. The mandate did not state a preference for mercury free vaccines, making New Jersey the first state in the nation to mandate the use of vaccines that continue to contain mercury above EPA safety limits. Under EPA safety limits on thimerosal, vaccines containing 25 mcg of thimerosal may only safely be used on individuals weighing 550 lbs or more. SafeMinds has joined many organizations expressing opposition to the use of mercury containing vaccines. "This development is shocking," stated SafeMinds President Elect, Theresa Wrangham, "By not stating preference for readily available mercury free vaccines within the mandate, parents will in effect be faced with the possibility of being forced to vaccinate their children with mercury containing vaccines. This is clearly a step backward given the lack of safety testing on thimerosal and statements made by an NIH expert panel refuting the quality of data used by CDC to assess safety." Recently, the British Medical Journal (BMJ) published a paper stating that the influenza vaccine was ineffective in preventing influenza deaths, while in 2005 the Lancet published a paper casting doubt on the safety of influenza vaccine given to children. Both papers were authored by prestigious Cochrane Collaboration scientists. Sallie Bernard, Executive Director for SafeMinds noted that "The risk-benefit analysis shows that mandates for mercury containing influenza vaccines for children are clearly not warranted and may be dangerous to children's health." Additionally, according to the EPA, one in every six women of childbearing age already has blood levels of mercury high enough to cause neurological damage to their unborn children due to environmental exposures alone. "Injecting even more mercury into the bodies infants and children when it is not a necessary component of vaccines is just bad medicine," said Lyn Redwood, President of SafeMinds.
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