Committee
on Government Reform
Rep. Dan Burton, R-Indiana, Chairman
2157 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515 · (202) 225-5074
For Immediate
Release
December 6, 2002
Contact: Blain
Rethmeier/Nick Mutton
(202) 225-5074
http://www.reform.house.gov/pr.02.12.06b.htm
Washington, D.C. - Nationwide,
as many as 1.5 million Americans are believed to have
some form of autism spectrum disorder, and Congressman
Dan Burton (R-IN), Chairman of the Committee on
Government Reform, wants to know what the federal
government is doing about it.
The Committee on Government Reform
will hold a hearing entitled, "Vaccines and the
Autism Epidemic: Reviewing the Federal Government's
Track Record and Charting a Course for the Future,"
on December 10, 2002, in 2154 Rayburn House Office
Building at 1:30 p.m.
In recent years, the number of
American children suffering from autism has skyrocketed.
A recent well-published study funded by the State of
California determined the number of autism cases in the
state has tripled in the last 10 years. Based on
statistics from the U.S. Department of Education and
other governmental agencies, autism is growing at a rate
of 10-17 percent per year.
Said Burton, "Fifteen years
ago, one in every 10,000 children in America was
autistic. Today, one in every 250 children is autistic.
We have an epidemic on our hands. If this trend
continues at a constant rate, the prevalence of autism
could reach 4 million Americans in the next
decade."
Autism is a complex developmental
disability that typically appears during the first three
years of life. A growing number of parents and
scientists believe that there may be a relationship
between autism and childhood vaccines. One leading
suspect is thimerosal, a preservative which was used for
decades to kill bacteria in vaccines and contains ethyl
mercury. It has long been known that over-exposure to
mercury in children can cause serious neurological
problems in developing children.
On November 21, 2002, Chairman
Burton wrote to President Bush urging him to host a
White House conference on autism and to begin a national
effort to determine why autism has reached epidemic
proportions in the United States.
The text of the letter follows and
for more information on this autism investigation,
please visit the House Government Reform's website at www.reform.house.gov
November 21, 2002
The President
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear Mr. President:
I am writing to urge you to host a
White House conference on autism to galvanize a national
effort to determine why autism has reached epidemic
proportions in this country.
Fifteen years ago, one in 10,000
children in the United States was autistic. Today,
estimates place that number at one in 250. A recent
study funded by the State of California determined that
the number of autistic children in California has
tripled, and that the increase could not be attributed
to better diagnoses or more accurate testing.
This explosive growth in autism has
had devastating consequences for families and
communities all across the country. Families of autistic
children face great emotional and financial hardships as
they seek to care for their children. Local school
districts have been overwhelmed financially and
logistically as they attempt to educate these children
with so many special needs. As a nation, we must develop
solutions to help families and communities cope with
these challenges.
We must also try to determine what
is causing this outbreak and how it can be stopped. One
possible explanation is the mercury preservative that
was used for years in pediatric vaccines. It is
troubling that at the same time that autism was
skyrocketing, additional vaccines were being added to
the routine vaccination schedule, increasing the
cumulative amount of mercury to which young children
were exposed. The Institute of Medicine called this
theory unproven, but "biologically plausible,"
and called for much more research. Other factors may
also be behind this increase, and it is entirely
possible that a combination of factors in the
environment may be at work.
At a White House conference, you
could bring together the best minds from across the
country to chart a course of scientific research to
uncover the underlying causes of this epidemic. Right
now such research is not being aggressively pursued. You
could also bring together parents of autistic children
and leaders in the fields of education and social
services to begin to address the difficult challenges
they face.
Mr. President, you are in a unique
position to provide the leadership that is necessary to
organize a national effort to resolve these problems.
Members of the House and Senate would, without a doubt,
work with you to mobilize whatever resources are
necessary to mount such an effort. I urge you to host a
White House conference on autism.
Thank you very much for your
leadership, and for your consideration of this request.
Sincerely,
Dan Burton
Member of Congress
Witnesses:
Panel One
Dental
Information 
