The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has quietly revised a key section of its website, altering long-standing language that clearly stated childhood vaccines do not cause autism. According to multiple health reporting outlets, the updated version now asserts that the statement “Vaccines do not cause autism” is “not an evidence-based claim” and adds that studies supporting a causal link were “ignored by health authorities.”
The change—published on November 19, 2025—contradicts decades of scientific consensus and extensive research showing no convincing link between vaccines and autism. It also appears to align with views held by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the current U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, who has for years challenged mainstream vaccine safety findings.
Several career CDC scientists reported that they were neither consulted nor notified about the revision. In one account, a former senior CDC leader said that staff were “blindsided” by the change. Critics—including autism researchers and paediatric infectious-disease specialists—warn that the revision undermines public trust in the CDC and could fuel vaccine hesitancy. One noted that “trust in the CDC going forward will be difficult.”
In response to questions, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) stated the update reflects “gold standard, evidence-based science.” Meanwhile, anti-vaccine advocacy groups praised the change as a triumph for transparency, although their claims remain outside established scientific consensus.
The abrupt revision raises broader concerns about the integrity of the CDC’s communications at a time when public health agencies are under pressure to navigate misinformation, emerging pandemics, and declining vaccine uptake. As one former CDC official put it, “when scientists are cut out of scientific reviews, then inaccurate and ideological information results.”
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