GOP reps condemn anti-vax movement

Republicans on a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Tuesday used a hearing on the flu season to debunk claims that vaccines are not safe for children as fear continues to grow over the country’s measles outbreak.

Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.) asked four of the country’s top infectious disease experts if they believed that parents should have their children vaccinated.

“Definitely,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “To me it’s really a slam dunk what the decision should be.”

{mosads}The three other officials — representing the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response — all emphatically agreed. All said they had vaccinated their own children.

In response to a question from Murphy, all four also confirmed the science showing there is no link between the measles vaccine and autism.

The measles outbreak in California became a major theme of the hearing, though it had been planned to specifically discuss this year’s flu season.

“I want to focus on measles,” said Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said, who added that the disease has become a hot topic for “a lot of mommy blogs.”

Each of the half-dozen lawmakers who spoke on measles said they were alarmed by the growing anti-vaccination movement — both Republicans and Democrats. The remarks came one day after high-profile Republicans, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), said that parents should have a choice on vaccinations.

“When I hear about counties in California that have lower immunization rates than the Sudan and Chad, this is something that is of concern to me,” Blackburn said.

Rep. Diana Degette (D-Colo.), the top Democrat on the subcommittee, said she is worried about parents who don’t vaccinate because one of her own children cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons.

“There’s no reason not to and there’s every reason they could be threat to themselves and other children,” she said. “It’s very, very important.”