Thimerosal Banned in Chilean Vaccines. A New Law
Bioautismo-Chile is proud to announce that on January 15, 2014, a law regulating the use of Thimerosal in vaccines was unanimously approved by our Congress (84 votes in favor [with 5 abstentions]). The bill, #7036-11, which eliminates mercury from most all vaccines, is the end of a successful legislative process that brought all political parties together to the conclusion that our population has to be protected. The next and last legislative step is the Country President’s signature of this Law.
The Law was approved with the following indications:
- Thimerosal will be banned from all vaccines for the most vulnerable segments of the population (children 0-8 years of age, pregnant women, and adults over 60 years of age).
- Trace amounts of Thimerosal will be allowed (up to 1 microgram of mercury per dose) in vaccines for the rest of the population, with informed consent, as per current Law # 20.584, article 14.
- In case of emergencies or epidemic outbreaks, Thimerosal amounts higher than a trace may be allowed, but not simply because of a lack of stock, rather because there are no alternatives in the market without this compound, and always under a Presidential decree, keeping close attention to the strictest limits set forth by the regulatory agencies in the world, and, as always, with informed consent.
We are extremely thankful for our legislators who voted for this law based on real evidence and not based on the declarations made by international organizations with obvious conflicts of interest and/or organizations that are also highly responsible for the continuous and systematic injection of mercury into the children of developing countries.
Also, we would like to recognize the key role played by our congressmen and congresswomen, who led this initiative from the beginning, Mrs. Cristina Girardi, Mr. René Saffirio, Dr. Enrique Accorsi and Dr. Juan Lobos (deceased), who was President of the Congress’ Health Commission when this effort began.
It is also important to highlight the courage and clarity of Dr. Enrique Paris, Pediatrician and Toxicologist, President of the Medical College of Chile, Chairman of the Toxicology Center (CITUC), who supported this process from the beginning, advocating for the Precautionary Principle and the Equality Principle, cornerstones of this Law.
We extend our thanks to CoMeD (Coalition For Mercury-free Drugs) and ARI (Autism Research Institute), both NGOs from the United States, as well as to Doctors Janet K. Kern, Evelyn Calderon, Paul G. King, Sergio Vaisman, and Pharmaceutical Chemist Mrs. Alexandra Zuñiga, all of whom prepared the latest reports given to the Congress’ Health Commission, prior to the final vote for this Law in Congress.
This could not have been possible if we did not have the unconditional support of our citizens, who have supported this cause from the start, which was demonstrated by the more than 20,000 supporting signatures, given to the current President of Chile in September of 2012. It could not have been possible either without the coverage given by our independent Media, the active participation of our friends and health professionals from all over Chile and the rest of the World, and especially the families of the children with autism.
This Law is a historical achievement and a tremendous advance towards the best vaccines for our children in the region and, without any doubt, must be coupled with better detection, intervention and therapy programs for autism, to better prepare those harmed for their adult life. This is a pending debt owed to them by our country.
Respectfully,
