Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has signed a recommendation to remove a mercury-based preservative from influenza vaccines in the United States, the Department of Health and Human Services said on July 23.
Kennedy signed the recommendation from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices on Tuesday, the agency said.
“After more than two decades of delay, this action fulfills a long-overdue promise to protect our most vulnerable populations from unnecessary mercury exposure,” Kennedy said in a statement. “Injecting any amount of mercury into children when safe, mercury-free alternatives exist defies common sense and public health responsibility. Today, we put safety first.”
Thimerosal, which is about 50 percent mercury by weight, was removed from many vaccines beginning in 1999, when some studies indicated that early exposure to mercury could negatively impact children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on its website that “there is no evidence of harm caused by the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines, except for minor reactions like redness and swelling at the injection site.”…