State health officials from California, Oregon, Hawaii, and Washington have issued a joint statement addressing recent updates to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) “Autism and Vaccines” webpage. The officials, who are part of the West Coast Health Alliance, reaffirmed their support for vaccines as a critical public health measure.
The Alliance expressed concern over what they described as inaccurate claims regarding a link between vaccines and autism that were recently posted on the CDC website. They emphasized that extensive research involving millions of people across multiple countries over several decades has consistently shown no connection between vaccines and autism.
In their statement, the Alliance said: “The West Coast Health Alliance continues to strongly recommend vaccines to protect our children, noting that rigorous research of millions of people in multiple countries over decades provides high quality evidence that vaccines are not linked to autism. The Alliance is deeply concerned about inaccurate claims to the contrary recently posted on the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.”
They further clarified: “Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental condition with multiple contributing genetic and environmental factors. Suggesting it stems from any single cause, such as vaccination, misleads families who deserve accurate guidance. It is not only a disservice to families seeking clarity about vaccines but also potentially harmful to autistic individuals and their families.”
Highlighting vaccine safety, they added: “Vaccines are thoroughly tested and remain one of the most important tools for preventing infectious diseases. Public health guidance on immunization must be grounded in credible, evidence-based science to help parents and caregivers who may be receiving conflicting or inaccurate messages about immunization.”
The officials urged families to consult trusted healthcare providers or reputable medical organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics when seeking information about immunizations.
