The Slatest

Measles-Mumps-Rubella Vaccine Not Linked to Autism, Large Study Concludes

Listen up, California.

Uwe Dedering/Wikimedia Commons

A study published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association has found no link between the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism, even in children considered to have an elevated risk of developing the disorder. (A recent measles outbreak that affected 14 states began in California, where the belief that vaccines can cause autism is relatively widespread.)

The study “examined insurance claims for 96,000 U.S. children born between 2001 and 2007” to look for a connection between MMR vaccinations and autism spectrum disorders (ASD), the Wall Street Journal writes. From the study itself:

Screen shot/JAMA

While lawmakers in California and elsewhere are increasingly proposing strengthened vaccination requirements, Renee DiResta wrote recently in Slate, the considerable commitment of the “anti-vaxxer” true-believer cohort makes it an effective opponent of sanity-oriented legislation despite its minority views.