Skeptic Ginger
8th February 2008, 09:43 AM
I have written 2 resolutions to submit to the caucuses tomorrow.
Some background:
WA State passed a bad law last year banning vaccines with Thimerosal for children 3 & under and pregnant women. Since most providers using multidose vials of influenza vaccine were unaware of the law until vaccine season, they had to waste vaccine they had purchased and many OBGYN practices were left unable to order single dose flu vaccine leaving many patients unvaccinated. This year the same state legislators want to expand the law to include all flu vaccinations. That bill likely won't pass because the medical community was alerted. But the existing law remains. It was pushed through without the medical community's awareness. (Shame on us, I guess.)
The Bill sponsors cited the Autism Research Institute and Dr Andy Cutler as their main sources of information that Thimerosal was harmful. They also stated that "government funded research" wasn't trustworthy and "the medical establishment" was ignoring the research showing the vaccine-autism connection. Both the ARI and Dr Cutler (a chemist, BTW, not a medical Dr.) are chelation therapy nut cases. Cutler is in the mercury-in-your-fillings are toxic crowd.
Valid research may have little impact. The legslators may not want to admit they were bamboozled. But I intend to show that the sources the legislators have relied on are poor sources of information by exposing the sources for what they are in letters to the news editors and letters to the representatives.
In addition on Sat I will be presenting two resolutions at the Democratic Caucus meeting, one to rescind the law and one to support evidence based medicine. I hope to recruit others including anyone on the forum from WA State to do the same at their caucuses. Resolutions only have an effect if many caucuses support the same ones.
For Republicans, you have some kind of questionnaire to fill out at the caucus and don't submit resolutions. Take a copy of the resolutions with you in case it helps with background or other specifics. I have no clue what is on the questionnaire.
The resolutions are below in case any of you are in WA State and are going to your caucus meeting and wish to present them. It doesn't matter which party. Of the 5 state legislators who sponsored the new bill (HB6300) 4 were Democrats (it's embarrassing) and one was Republican. That is the bill that hopefully won't pass. The bill that did pass did so by unanimous vote. That tells me we are doing a poor job in WA State promoting skepticism at the government level.
I plan further action to get the law rescinded in the future. This is only one important step. Members of our public health department are also involved in getting the law rescinded. But the more the merrier. :D
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Resolution to Rescind ESSB 5305, a Bill Based on Bad Science Needlessly Banning the Use of Certain Vaccines
Whereas the Food and Drug Administration, (FDA), the United States Public Health Service, (USPHS), the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, (ACIP), and educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners are qualified to, and do review the medical research related to prescription drugs including the safety of vaccines and do together provide more than sufficient oversight of vaccine approval and prescribing practices.
Whereas there is an overwhelming consensus among scientists and the health care establishment who have reviewed the research that there is now sufficient scientific evidence to conclude there is no connection between vaccines and autism, and that vaccines currently on the market with the preservative thimerosal are safe and effective for the patients they are prescribed for.
Whereas most legislators are not qualified to make decisions interfering with the prescriptive authority of educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners, and passage of ESSB 5305 which passed Legislature in the 2006 Regular Session by unanimous vote is evidence the legislators were misled by bad science and fringe groups which promote bad science.
Whereas as ESSB 5305 undermines the credibility of educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners who have been fighting against dangerous vaccine myths including the myth that thimerosal in vaccines is unsafe despite more than 50 years of use and no credible evidence of harm.
Whereas ESSB 5305 resulted in local shortages of flu vaccine which could be used for pregnant women and children under 3 this flu season in WA State and the consequences could be fatal in persons who went unvaccinated because of this Bill.
Whereas ESSB 5305 resulted in increased costs for influenza vaccines in WA State.
Be it resolved that we support all efforts to rescind the well intentioned but wrongly thought out ESSB 5305 banning the use of certain vaccines which are FDA approved and determined appropriate for the patient by the ACIP of the USPHS and prescribed by educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners.
Submitted to the Democratic Caucus for consideration on February 9, 2008, in _______________ WA by _____________________________ For Questions contact me at ______________________
Resolution to Support Scientific Evidence Based Medicine
Whereas the Food and Drug Administration, (FDA), the United States Public Health Service, (USPHS), the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, (ACIP), the WA State Boards of Pharmacy, Nursing and Medicine and educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners are qualified to, and do review the medical research related to the risks and benefits of medical interventions, including prescription drugs and vaccines.
Whereas there is no monopoly on the funding of medical research, and there is no censorship of the outcomes of such research sufficient to conceal those research outcomes from practicing educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners and all the other regulating bodies which WA State relies on to assure the safety and appropriateness of medical and nursing care in the state.
Whereas the healthcare community on the whole practices scientific evidence based medicine and is qualified to determine the valid results of medical research.
Whereas most legislators are not qualified to make decisions interfering with the prescriptive authority of educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners, nor are most legislators qualified to override decisions made by the FDA, the USPHS, the ACIP, and all the WA State Boards of Health.
Be It Resolved That the Democratic Party fully supports scientific evidence based medicine and does trust that the medical establishment, including educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners are fully capable of evaluating the scientific research and are fully capable of making appropriate decisions affecting a patient’s medical care without undo interference by legislators who may be influenced themselves by persuasive fringe groups and quacks who rely on bad science and outright fraudulent sources of information.
Submitted to the Democratic Caucus for consideration on February 9, 2008, in _______________ WA by __________________________________________________ ______________________________
For Questions contact the above at ______________________________________________
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The format is as I have worded them. There must be the title, the identifying info at the bottom, the "Whereas...", and the "Be it resolved that..." and it should all fit on one page. You may have to adjust the font sizes and/or margins to do that on the longer one.
I have the title in bold 18 pt font, the body in 14 and the ending in 12 with margins at 0.8 all around.
Some background:
WA State passed a bad law last year banning vaccines with Thimerosal for children 3 & under and pregnant women. Since most providers using multidose vials of influenza vaccine were unaware of the law until vaccine season, they had to waste vaccine they had purchased and many OBGYN practices were left unable to order single dose flu vaccine leaving many patients unvaccinated. This year the same state legislators want to expand the law to include all flu vaccinations. That bill likely won't pass because the medical community was alerted. But the existing law remains. It was pushed through without the medical community's awareness. (Shame on us, I guess.)
The Bill sponsors cited the Autism Research Institute and Dr Andy Cutler as their main sources of information that Thimerosal was harmful. They also stated that "government funded research" wasn't trustworthy and "the medical establishment" was ignoring the research showing the vaccine-autism connection. Both the ARI and Dr Cutler (a chemist, BTW, not a medical Dr.) are chelation therapy nut cases. Cutler is in the mercury-in-your-fillings are toxic crowd.
Valid research may have little impact. The legslators may not want to admit they were bamboozled. But I intend to show that the sources the legislators have relied on are poor sources of information by exposing the sources for what they are in letters to the news editors and letters to the representatives.
In addition on Sat I will be presenting two resolutions at the Democratic Caucus meeting, one to rescind the law and one to support evidence based medicine. I hope to recruit others including anyone on the forum from WA State to do the same at their caucuses. Resolutions only have an effect if many caucuses support the same ones.
For Republicans, you have some kind of questionnaire to fill out at the caucus and don't submit resolutions. Take a copy of the resolutions with you in case it helps with background or other specifics. I have no clue what is on the questionnaire.
The resolutions are below in case any of you are in WA State and are going to your caucus meeting and wish to present them. It doesn't matter which party. Of the 5 state legislators who sponsored the new bill (HB6300) 4 were Democrats (it's embarrassing) and one was Republican. That is the bill that hopefully won't pass. The bill that did pass did so by unanimous vote. That tells me we are doing a poor job in WA State promoting skepticism at the government level.
I plan further action to get the law rescinded in the future. This is only one important step. Members of our public health department are also involved in getting the law rescinded. But the more the merrier. :D
-
Resolution to Rescind ESSB 5305, a Bill Based on Bad Science Needlessly Banning the Use of Certain Vaccines
Whereas the Food and Drug Administration, (FDA), the United States Public Health Service, (USPHS), the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, (ACIP), and educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners are qualified to, and do review the medical research related to prescription drugs including the safety of vaccines and do together provide more than sufficient oversight of vaccine approval and prescribing practices.
Whereas there is an overwhelming consensus among scientists and the health care establishment who have reviewed the research that there is now sufficient scientific evidence to conclude there is no connection between vaccines and autism, and that vaccines currently on the market with the preservative thimerosal are safe and effective for the patients they are prescribed for.
Whereas most legislators are not qualified to make decisions interfering with the prescriptive authority of educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners, and passage of ESSB 5305 which passed Legislature in the 2006 Regular Session by unanimous vote is evidence the legislators were misled by bad science and fringe groups which promote bad science.
Whereas as ESSB 5305 undermines the credibility of educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners who have been fighting against dangerous vaccine myths including the myth that thimerosal in vaccines is unsafe despite more than 50 years of use and no credible evidence of harm.
Whereas ESSB 5305 resulted in local shortages of flu vaccine which could be used for pregnant women and children under 3 this flu season in WA State and the consequences could be fatal in persons who went unvaccinated because of this Bill.
Whereas ESSB 5305 resulted in increased costs for influenza vaccines in WA State.
Be it resolved that we support all efforts to rescind the well intentioned but wrongly thought out ESSB 5305 banning the use of certain vaccines which are FDA approved and determined appropriate for the patient by the ACIP of the USPHS and prescribed by educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners.
Submitted to the Democratic Caucus for consideration on February 9, 2008, in _______________ WA by _____________________________ For Questions contact me at ______________________
Resolution to Support Scientific Evidence Based Medicine
Whereas the Food and Drug Administration, (FDA), the United States Public Health Service, (USPHS), the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, (ACIP), the WA State Boards of Pharmacy, Nursing and Medicine and educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners are qualified to, and do review the medical research related to the risks and benefits of medical interventions, including prescription drugs and vaccines.
Whereas there is no monopoly on the funding of medical research, and there is no censorship of the outcomes of such research sufficient to conceal those research outcomes from practicing educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners and all the other regulating bodies which WA State relies on to assure the safety and appropriateness of medical and nursing care in the state.
Whereas the healthcare community on the whole practices scientific evidence based medicine and is qualified to determine the valid results of medical research.
Whereas most legislators are not qualified to make decisions interfering with the prescriptive authority of educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners, nor are most legislators qualified to override decisions made by the FDA, the USPHS, the ACIP, and all the WA State Boards of Health.
Be It Resolved That the Democratic Party fully supports scientific evidence based medicine and does trust that the medical establishment, including educated licensed physicians and nurse practitioners are fully capable of evaluating the scientific research and are fully capable of making appropriate decisions affecting a patient’s medical care without undo interference by legislators who may be influenced themselves by persuasive fringe groups and quacks who rely on bad science and outright fraudulent sources of information.
Submitted to the Democratic Caucus for consideration on February 9, 2008, in _______________ WA by __________________________________________________ ______________________________
For Questions contact the above at ______________________________________________
-
The format is as I have worded them. There must be the title, the identifying info at the bottom, the "Whereas...", and the "Be it resolved that..." and it should all fit on one page. You may have to adjust the font sizes and/or margins to do that on the longer one.
I have the title in bold 18 pt font, the body in 14 and the ending in 12 with margins at 0.8 all around.