“I’ve seen it repeatedly in the leaders of the antivaccine movements. They think that we’re lying, that we cheat both at the vaccine manufacturer level and at the immunization committee level,” said Dr. Fulginiti, who is chancellor emeritus at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.
He added that another recurring theme in the antivaccine organizations is a lack of scientific understanding: “In trying to explain biologic plausibility to them, the parents don’t seem to get that.”
Dr. Anderson said many parents who question the need for vaccines love to do their research at what she called “the University of Google,” where they can encounter some pretty biased and inaccurate sites that focus on rare negative events.
She provided a list of alternative sites where parents can find more reliable information:
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine safety
• CDC Vaccine Information Statements
• National Vaccine Advisory Committee Vaccine Safety Working Group
• "Vaccine Safety Research, Data Access, and Public Trust" (Washington: Institute of Medicine, 2005)
• Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment
• Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Vaccine Education Center
Dr. Anderson disclosed that she has served as a speaker for Merck & Co., Novartis, and Sanofi Pasteur, all of which make vaccines.