The Los Angeles Times on Saturday looked at the controversy surrounding the use of thimerosal, a preservative that is 49.6% ethyl mercury, in infant vaccines. More than 4,200 families nationwide allege that vaccine doses containing the preservative caused autism in their children, and they are seeking compensation from a branch of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C., sometimes referred to as the "vaccine court." Vaccine makers and some health officials dispute the claims, saying that there is no reliable scientific evidence of a connection between thimerosal and autism. Within the next few months, the families' case will be heard in court. If the special master presiding over the hearing finds for the parents, a "flood of successful claims could exhaust" a $2 billion trust fund financed through a 75-cent surcharge per vaccine dose. Vaccine manufacturers have been decreasing thimerosal use since 1999, when CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics asked that the preservative be removed as a precaution, and by 2002, "thimerosal was present only in trace amounts in routine vaccines," the Times reports.
However, thimerosal is still used in influenza shots, which CDC this year added to its vaccine schedule for children six months and older. Some lawmakers, "[e]xasperated" because CDC has "spurned appeals to recommend thimerosal-free shots," have filed bills in Congress and several states, including California, addressing thimerosal use, according to the Times (Levin, Los Angeles Times, 8/7). Under a bill (AB 2943) sponsored by state Assembly member Fran Pavley (D-Woodland Hills), physicians would no longer administer vaccines that contain more than trace amounts of thimerosal to pregnant women and infants (California Healthline, 8/6).
Editorial
"Common sense and prudence argue for" passage of AB 2943, a Los Angeles Times editorial states. Although Aventis-Pasteur, the only manufacturer of flu vaccine for toddlers, "opposes the bill, hinting that it might lead to vaccine shortage," Pavley has already addressed this concern by amending the bill to include a provision allowing vaccines containing thimerosal to be used "in the event of a public health emergency," the editorial continues. The editorial also notes that Aventis "already markets its product in ... single-dose, thimerosal-free vials" as well as in the multi-dose packages that contain the preservative (Los Angeles Times, 8/7).