Vaccine-Autism Researcher Indicted for Fraud

SILVER SPRING, Maryland, April 20, 2011 - Based on last week's indictment
(mercury-freedrugs.org/docs/20110413_USAv_Thorsen_Indictment.pdf) of
vaccine-autism researcher Dr. Poul Thorsen for money laundering and mail
fraud, the Coalition for Mercury-free Drugs
(mercury-freedrugs.org/docs/20110105_CoMeD_onepager_Preservatives_rb.pdf)
(CoMeD), a Maryland-based non-profit organization, is calling for further
investigation related to the incident.

Thorsen, a Danish scientist, has already been cited for academic
misconduct by Aarhus University
(www.rescuepost.com/files/thorsen-aarhus.pdf) in Denmark and is now
charged with embezzling a $1 million grant for autism
(www.justice.gov/usao/gan/press/2011/04-13-11.html) from the Centers
for Disease Control (CDC). For several years, Thorsen was involved in
influential studies defending the controversial use of Thimerosal (about 50%
mercury by weight) as a preservative in several vaccines.

Thimerosal has been linked to autism
(jpp.krakow.pl/journal/archive/12_10/articles/14_article.html) and
other neurological diseases
(www.autismtreatmentclinics.com/uploads/Published_Thimerosal_Exposure_in_Infants___NDs_-_Assessment_of_the_VSD1.pdf)
by numerous studies. Dr. Paul G. King, Scientific Advisor for CoMeD,
explains, "We need to consider the ever-growing body of toxicity studies
linking the mercury in Thimerosal to severe neurological deficits, like
autism, and to immune-system and mitochondrial damage. Such studies have
shown that the level of Thimerosal in vaccines is not safe
(mercury-freedrugs.org/docs/090813_fnldrft_EditorialOnSubacuteMercury(Hg)PoisoningByMedicine_r6b.pdf)."

As U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said
(www.justice.gov/usao/gan/press/2011/04-13-11.html), "Grant money for
disease research is a precious commodity. When grant funds are stolen, we
lose not only the money, but also the opportunity to better understand and
cure debilitating diseases."

According to CoMeD, U.S. health agencies have relied upon these now
questionable Danish studies to sanction the use of Thimerosal. CoMeD
registered its concerns about Thorsen and his influence on these studies in a
groundbreaking letter
(mercury-freedrugs.org/docs/100915_OIG_HHSLetterd.pdf) to Daniel R.
Levinson, Inspector General the Department of Health and Human Services, on
September 15, 2010. An international community of researchers and advocates
signed onto the CoMeD letter.

Now, CoMeD is calling for an independent investigation into the
scientific validity of all Danish vaccine-autism studies conducted during
Thorsen's tenure and into the possible inappropriate involvement of employees
at the CDC. Further, CoMeD is calling for the retraction of the 2004
Institute of Medicine report rejecting the causal relationship between
Thimerosal and autism, which relied upon the Danish studies in which Thorsen
participated.

CoMeD seeks to restore the public confidence in vaccination programs by
banning the use of mercury-based compounds in vaccines and other medicines.
Despite CoMeD's efforts, the U.S. continues to license and recommend
Thimerosal-preserved vaccines for use in the U.S. and the rest of the world.
The World Health Organization, with the strong support of Bill Gates of the
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
(www.gatesfoundation.org/global-health/Pages/overview.aspx), continues
to distribute Thimerosal-preserved vaccines in the developing world.

Rev. Lisa K. Sykes, President of CoMeD, expects the recent charges
against Thorsen to serve as a turning point in the debate over Thimerosal:
"In addition to the charges against Dr. Thorsen, the United Nations is
drafting a treaty
(www.unep.org/hazardoussubstances/Mercury/Negotiations/INC3/tabid/3469/Default.aspx)
to reduce mercury exposure, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is
reconsidering the use
(www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm215061.htm) of
mercury in dental fillings. I'd say its past time to reevaluate the legality,
as well as the soundness, of injecting a Thimerosal-preserved vaccine into
anyone."

Rev. Lisa K. Sykes, CoMeD President, +1-804-740-7128, Lisa at Mercury-freeDrugs.org