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Bhattacharya tells senators he does not believe MMR causes autism but supports broader research into autism causes; pushes NIH emphasis on chronic disease and '
Summary
Dr. Bhattacharya said he does not generally believe vaccines cause autism but acknowledged distrust from the pandemic era and supported research into autism's causes and prevention. He told senators NIH should pivot more toward chronic disease research, replication, decentralization and low‑cost drug studies.
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya told the Senate HELP Committee he does not generally believe the MMR vaccine causes autism but said he would support ‘‘a broad scientific agenda’’ to study autism’s causes and other childhood health problems, while cautioning about the opportunity cost of repeatedly reexamining questions that prior studies have extensively addressed.
During questioning by Senator Collins and Senator Sanders, Bhattacharya said, "I don't generally believe that there is a link" between measles‑mumps‑rubella vaccine and autism and cited his reading of the literature. He also said that because a minority of people may disagree with the consensus, a director’s principal lever would be to…
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