Thursday’s online version of the British Medical Journal has published an article by British journalist Brian Deer which once again refutes the connection between a vaccine and autism. The original study by Andrew Wakefield and his colleagues published in 1998 was later refuted by 10 of its 13 authors and retracted in the Lancet which originally published the article.

Even though Wakefield claimed that the 12 children evaluated in the original study were all normal until they received the MMR vaccine, further analysis revealed that at least 5 of the 12 had already been diagnosed with developmental problems. In interviewing the children’s parents and reviewing medical records it was found that all of the cases were somehow misrepresented. An accompanying editorial called the entire original study a “fraud.”

Wakefield was stripped of his medical license in Britain and has now moved to the United States where he has authored a book once again touting the vaccine-autism connection. This is where celebrity Jenny McCarthy gets the ammunition for her diatribes against vaccines. I fault Oprah and others for giving her a platform to spread information that has been disproved by other medical studies. There has been a large resurgence of measles in the United Kingdom where the original study first gained popularity.

Keep all of this information in mind the next time you hear one of the conspiracy theorists claiming that vaccines cause autism. bjmdjd

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British Medical Journal · Jenny McCarthy · Lancet · MMR · vaccine-autism connection

The first baby boomer became eligible for Medicare this past Saturday. If you thought the system was already in financial trouble just wait. Now a baby boomer will qualify for Medicare every 8 seconds! By the year 2030 the Medicare ranks will swell from 47 million today to 80 million.

Another problem is that the baby boomers are healthier as a whole than earlier retirees and thus will be in the system longer and require more money as they age. Trying to keep pace with the sheer numbers and the expensive advances in medical care that further prolongs life will greatly strain the system.

There will be more pressure for the government to reduce Medicare benefits but groups like the AARP and the very vocal baby boomers won’t stand for that and will put up quite a fight. Whomever suggests reducing benefits or making Medicare recipients pay more will be committing political suicide.

No doubt it will be fascinating to watch. bjmdjd

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baby boomers · Medicare · reduce Medicare benefits