4 claim verifications about Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ×
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention paused diagnostic testing for rabies in 2026.”
Multiple independent, high-authority news outlets — including CIDRAP, CBS News, The Guardian, and POLITICO Pro — confirm that the CDC listed rabies diagnostic testing as "temporarily paused" on its website beginning around March 30, 2026, amid staffing shortages and agency restructuring. The word "paused" in the claim accurately reflects the temporary nature of the halt. State public health labs retained some testing capacity during this period, but the CDC's own diagnostic services were indeed suspended.
“Vaccines contain ingredients that are harmful to human health.”
This claim is misleading. While it's true that rare allergic reactions to vaccine excipients (like gelatin or PEG) occur in roughly 1 per million doses, the unqualified statement implies vaccines are broadly dangerous. The overwhelming scientific consensus — including WHO, the CDC, the AAP, and a landmark study of 1.2 million children — confirms that vaccine ingredients like aluminum adjuvants and thimerosal are safe at the doses used, with no causal link to autism, neurological disorders, or systemic harm.
“The MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine causes autism in children.”
This claim is false. The sole study linking MMR to autism (Wakefield, 1998) was retracted by The Lancet for deliberate fraud. Since then, overwhelming scientific evidence — including WHO's 2025 review of 31 studies, a Cochrane review of 23 million children, and a meta-analysis of 1.25 million children — consistently finds no causal link between the MMR vaccine and autism. Every major health authority (WHO, AAP, National Academies) confirms vaccines do not cause autism.
“Vaccines cause autism spectrum disorder in children.”
This claim is false. Decades of research — including WHO's December 2025 review of 31 studies, a Danish study of over 1 million children, and reviews by the National Academies and AAP — consistently find no causal link between vaccines and autism. The original 1998 Wakefield study that sparked this myth was retracted for fraud. A 2025 CDC website update noting causation hasn't been "ruled out" reflects uncertainty, not evidence of causation, and was criticized by the National Academies for lacking context.