The US National Institutes of Health plans to award US$50 million in grants to study the causes of autism. Kennedy also has hired vaccine skeptic David Geier to review long-established findings about vaccine safety data at the CDC.

Geier was fined by Maryland for practicing medicine without a license and prescribing dangerous treatments to autistic children.

The Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post have both reported that the Trump administration plans to link Tylenol use to autism. They also reported that the administration will suggest leucovorin, a form of folic acid, as a pain treatment.

ANTI-VACCINE GROUPS HAVE TRUMPETED TYLENOL LINK

Children’s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine group formerly headed by Kennedy, has also focused on the link between Tylenol and autism. Brian Hooker, chief scientific officer of CHD, has said he expects Kennedy to focus on Tylenol, as well as vaccines and vaccine components.

A panel of vaccine advisers named by Kennedy considered changes to the childhood vaccine schedule last week in a two-day meeting marked by points of confusion. The committee, which advises the CDC, voted to recommend changes to how a combination measles-mumps-rubella-varicella shot is given but delayed a vote on hepatitis B shots.

The panel said it will create a working group to look at the children’s vaccine schedule.