Vaccine Fears

In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the discredited notion that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread.   And among those diseases could be COVID-19.

Ben Kamisar and Melissa Holzberg at NBC:

Less than half of American adults say they would get a government-approved coronavirus vaccine if one becomes widely available, new data from the NBC News|SurveyMonkey Weekly Tracking Poll show, with the majority unsure about getting the vaccine or saying they're ruling it out entirely.

Forty-four percent of American adults say they would get the vaccine, with 22 percent saying

... 

Among Republicans and those who lean Republican, 31 percent say they aren't sure whether they would get a vaccine, while 36 percent say they would and 33 percent say they wouldn't. While a majority of Democrats and those who lean Democratic — 58 percent — say they would get a vaccine, 30 percent say they're unsure and just 12 percent say they wouldn't get vaccinated.

With different wording, Gallup found that most Republicans would not take the vaccine.

Pinterest and Vaccines

In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the discredited notion that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread.   And among those diseases could be COVID-19.

Jeanine P.D.Guidry and colleagues have an article at Vaccine titled "(S)pin the Flu Faccine: Recipes for Concern."  The abstract:

Influenza epidemics happen yearly, and the World Health Organization estimates that the virus is connected to between 290,000 and 650,000 annual deaths. The most effective way to prevent seasonal influenza is vaccination. The prevalence of vaccine misinformation on social media is increasing, but the visual platform Pinterest is understudied in this area. The current study is the first to explore the content and nature of influenza information that is shared on Pinterest. Using a quantitative content analysis, Pinterest messages were theoretically analyzed for Health Belief Model variables as well as for message source, engagement, and position on vaccination. Findings showed concerning trends but also promising opportunities for health organizations and professionals.

From the article:

 While many recent vaccine-focused social media studies have produced an alarming picture of a clear majority of anti-vaccine posts on several platforms [13], [15], this study suggests posts that surface when searching for the vlu vaccine on Pinterest were more balanced between provides a more balanced picture posts supporting and posts critiquing the flu vaccine, at least before Pinterest’s policy changes from 2019. Similarly, perceived benefits of the flu vaccines and perceived barriers to the vaccine were each present in approximately-one quarter of the total sample. Finally, posts originating with Pinterest influencers – which may be more likely to be spread on the platform – were more likely to be pro-flu vaccine.

However, the news is not entirely good. In general, pins associated with higher engagement appeared to be primarily associated with anti-vaccine variables and constructs: for example, pins that refer to deadly consequences of the flu vaccine, other adverse reactions to the flu vaccine, mistrust of flu vaccine safety, alternative ways of protecting oneself from the flu, and several types of fear provoking visuals (e.g., a syringe needle, threat signs such as a skull and crossbones, or a scared facial expression) all elicit significantly higher engagement than pins that do not refer to these concepts.

Back to School

 In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the day-to-day challenges facing autistic people and their families. Those challenges get far more intense during disasters.  And coronavirus is proving to be the biggest disaster of all. Providing education is proving to be very difficult.

Rashaan Ayesh, Erica Pandey at Axios:

Over the summer, some schools found ways to move IEPs online, but there are a slew of problems. "Delivering special education online is not easy," says Emily Smith, founder of Teleteachers, which provides online tutoring to students with disabilities. "We're seeing a big learning curve."
...
For example, in Northern Virginia, "8-year-old Theo Duran, who is autistic, struggles more to walk up the stairs or hold a crayon to write — all tasks he was making progress on before the coronavirus pandemic hit and shut down his school," Perry Stein and Valerie Strauss write for the Washington Post.

Students rely on in-person learning so they can pick up on social cues and further develop socially and behaviorally.

And the parents of students who receive multiple services — such as occupational therapy, speech therapy or counseling — have to keep up with a packed schedule of online sessions on top of virtual class time.

Special educators often have behavioral aides or other support staff in the classroom.
"In our new environment, there is no support staff," Smith says. "That falls on the parents who are likely working and likely have no idea how to help their child participate in a session."

The other side: Some students could potentially benefit from online school since they will be learning in the familiar environment of home.

Once teachers and parents figure it out, the integration of new technology could make special education more tailored for the individual student, Cunningham says.
Go deeper... Podcast: Special ed under pressure

Carolyn Jones at EdSource:

As schools in California begin re-opening virtually, state education officials have taken steps to improve distance learning for a group of students who were largely left behind in the spring: Those in special education.

But some parents wonder if distance learning will ever work well for students with disabilities.

The most significant new law, passed in June as part of the state budget, requires districts to craft distance learning plans for all students in special education, tailored to each student’s unique needs. The plans will apply to any emergency that forces a school to close for 10 days or more, including wildfires, earthquakes and pandemics.

The plans will be part of a student’s individualized education program, or IEP. Teachers, parents, therapists, counselors and other staff will create the plan during a student’s regularly scheduled IEP review, if not sooner.

“Finally, there’s something for parents to point at that guarantees a distance learning plan as part of an IEP,” said Robert Borrelle, an attorney for Disability Rights California, a nonprofit that advocates for people with disabilities. “Before this, some districts were doing nothing.”

The Autism Drug Market

In The Politics of Autism, I discuss treatments, including medication.

There are currently no medications for the core symptoms of autism.  But many autistic people do take drugs for irritability, anxiety, depression, and other co-occurring conditions.

A release from Fortune Business Insights:

According to a report published by Fortune Business Insights, titled, “Autism Spectrum Disorder Therapeutics Market”: Global Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2018-2026,” the global market is likely to reach US$ 4,612.1 Mn by 2026 owing to the rising incidence of autism spectrum disorder worldwide. The report provides valuable insights into the global market trends and factors that are directly affecting the growth of the market. As per the report, the global autism spectrum disorder therapeutics market was worth US$ 3,293.0 Mn in 2018. Considering the increasing awareness programs regarding this particular disorder and less availability of treatment options, the global market is expected to rise at a moderate CAGR of 4.3% during the forecast period (2019-2026).

Key Players Operating in The Autism Spectrum Disorder Therapeutics Market Include:
Key players are involved in mergers and acquisition to strengthen their market position. Owing to increasing competition frequent innovations are taking place in the market. Some of the companies operating the industry are:

• Applied Behavior Consultants,
• Allergan,
• Pfizer Inc.,
• Q BioMed Inc,
• Fusion Autism Center,
• AstraZeneca,
• Hopebridge, LLC.,
• Johnson and Johnson Services, Inc.,
• Behavior Innovations,
• Eli Lilly and Company,
• Otsuka Holdings Co. Ltd.,
• other prominent market players.

Request a Sample Copy of the Research Report:https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/request-sample-pdf/autism-spectrum-disorder-therapeutics-market-101207

Election Politics, Social Media, and #CripTheVote

In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the issue's role in presidential campaigns.

Juliet Isselbacher at STAT:

“To watch the shift from us having to beg candidates — like literally beg candidates — to include the word ‘disability’ as they rattled off diversity categories to [them] coming to us to say, ‘I want to engage with your folks’ … [this] was such a powerful shift,” said Rebecca Cokley, founder and director of the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress, a progressive policy think tank.
...
A 2017 bill poised to slash Medicaid coverage — which was introduced by GOP lawmakers and which Trump supported — became a flashpoint for many in the community. Advocates came out in force to protest the proposal on Capitol Hill, and dozens even staged a “die-in” at the door of Senate Majority Leader Mitch Mconnell’s office. In widely publicized photos, security forcibly arrested many of these protesters, dragging some from their wheelchairs.

“I think the increased media attention on those protests definitely shaped how the emerging field of candidates … treated the disability community,” Cokley said. “We saw a shift in the power dynamic. It went from candidates treating disabled people like a photo op — almost like a puppy — to actively treating us as engaged voters and stakeholders.”

Cokley said that social media also “blew open the doors” for community activism and coordination. In particular, the nonpartisan #CripTheVote hashtag has given people with disabilities, who account for 20% of the U.S. population, a way to unite and amplify the power of their voting bloc. Disability advocate Tiara Mercius described #CripTheVote — launched by disability activists Alice Wong, Gregg Beratan, and Andrew Pulrang in 2016 — as a “virtual coffee shop” for people with disabilities to discuss what they want out of elected officials.

Cokley said that nearly all the candidates with whom she consulted told her they had staff assigned to monitor the hashtag #CripTheVote. Taking advantage of this attention from campaigns — as well as their wide reach on Twitter — the movement’s co-founders put out an open invitation for presidential candidates or President Trump to join them in a live Twitter chat. Warren and Buttigeg both took them up on the offer.

GOP Activists Sue Newsom

 In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the day-to-day challenges facing autistic people and their families. Those challenges get far more intense during disasters.  And coronavirus is proving to be the biggest disaster of all. Providing education is proving to be very difficult.

Tony Cabrera at KABC-TV:

Southern California parents are suing Gov. Gavin Newsom and other state officials over the ban on in-person schooling, claiming it violates constitutional and federal rights.

Attorney Harmeet Dhillon joined some of her clients on a virtual press conference Thursday ahead of a hearing on the case Monday.

"The governor has imposed a one-size-fits-all template, where as in fact, there are numerous variations and parents have numerous needs and concerns as well," said Dhillon, the founder and CEO of The Center For American Liberty.

Those needs come from low-income minority families, single parent families and those who have children with disabilities.

"Special needs families are really being devastated. We're impacted so profoundly," said Santa Clarita mother Christine Ruiz.

...
"I believe that parents should have the choice to send their children to school or not. Teachers should have the choice to teach or not, and districts should have the choice to open or not," said Mission Viejo father Jesse Petrilla.

Dhillon is California's Republican National Committeewoman. and co-chair of Women for Trump.

In 2014, Petrilla ran for State Assembly as a Republican.

Countering Antivaxxers

In The Politics of Autism, I analyze the discredited notion that vaccines cause autism. This bogus idea can hurt people by allowing diseases to spread.   And among those diseases could be COVID-19.

Gallup:  If an FDA-approved vaccine to prevent coronavirus/COVID-19 was available right now at no cost, would you agree to be vaccinated? GALLUP PANEL, JULY 20-AUG. 2, 2020

.............................................Yes No
...............................................% %
All Americans ......................65 35
Men ......................................65 35
Women .................................65 35
Democrats ............................81 19
Independents ........................59 41
Republicans ..................47 53

Elizabeth Cohen and Dana Vigue at CNN:

While anti-vaxxers flood social media with lies about the upcoming coronavirus vaccine -- that it contains monkey brains, that it's a CIA plot to take over the world -- the government's multi-billion-dollar vaccine effort has yet to come up with a public education campaign to counteract that propaganda.

"We are behind here," said Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health. "We haven't done a good job of getting [coronavirus vaccine] information out there."

The stakes are high. A CNN poll in May found one-third of Americans said they would not try to get vaccinated against coronavirus, even if the vaccine is widely available and low cost.

"Speaking for myself, I think I underestimated the level of public resistance," Collins said. "I didn't expect it to be that widespread."

A spokesman for "Operation Warp Speed," the Trump administration's effort to get a coronavirus vaccine on the market, said a public education campaign will "soon focus" on vaccine education.

"We see more vaccine hesitancy with the Covid vaccine than with other vaccines. We know that. This concerns us, of course," said Michael Caputo, an assistant secretary for the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Thomas Buckley at Bloomberg:

As the fervor grew, Todd Wolynn, a fellow doctor and a co-founder of Shots Heard Round the World, an informal group that seeks to protect vaccine advocates from online abuse, enlisted 16 volunteers to help get hateful posts removed and some of their 6,000 authors banned. Wolynn also thought a counterattack might be in order—so he called in Zubin Damania.

Damania is something of a health-care avenger. His YouTube videos, in which he raps in costume or rants about the anti-vaccine movement and wider problems with the medical system, have been viewed tens of millions of times. He’s one of a growing number of physicians turned online influencers able to communicate compellingly to viewers who might otherwise fall prey to pseudoscience. After getting the call from Wolynn, he organized a virtual rally, calling on health workers of all stripes to post videos, statements, and evidence to discredit Baldwin’s aggressors alongside the hashtag #DoctorsSpeakUp. The resulting campaign trended nationally on Twitter.

Kamala Harris on Disabilities

In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the issue's role in presidential campaigns.

Biden has chosen Kamala Harris as his running mate.  During her own campaign, she released a position paper on disabilities.

Kamala Harris, Medium, August 29, 2019:

Recommitting to building inclusive economic opportunity in America

According to CDC data, about a quarter of people in the United States have a disability. Kamala believes in an America that is fully accessible and inclusive for everyone and her administration will fight to make this a reality across all parts of our society. As president, Kamala will have diverse leaders with disabilities developing all the policies her administration champions, including priorities that will lift up people with disabilities.

To do this we must expand economic opportunity and security for people with disabilities. In 2018, the unemployment rate for workers with disabilities was more than twice that for workers without disabilities. Only 32 percent of people with disabilities who are working-age are employed. On the other hand, 73 percent of people without disabilities in the same age group are employed. Just as we fight to finally eliminate practices that lead to people with disabilities being paid subminimum wages, we also have to speak the truth about how we need to eliminate barriers that make it harder for people with disabilities to fully participate in our workforce.

Under Kamala’s leadership, in partnership with the disability community, we can build an America that lives up to the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Our country is stronger when everyone is valued, everyone has dignity, and everyone can be part of the competitive labor force.

WHAT SHE’LL DO:

She’ll fight to create inclusive emp loyment opportunities that pay people with disabilities their full value.

She’ll pass the Transformation to Competitive Employment Act, which will establish a grant program for states to help redesign business models and strategies to increase employment of people with disabilities in competitive integrated employment.

People with disabilities are both more likely to work in low wage fields as well as be paid less than the minimum wage. That’s why she’ll pass the Raise the Wage Act, which will not only raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour but will also phase out the “subminimum” wage.

She’ll remove barriers that make it harder for people with disabilities to take advantage of job opportunities.

Kamala will make changes to the vocational rehabilitation system at the Department of Education, which gives grants to states to help people with disabilities prepare for, secure, and retain employment. Kamala will make sure that the grant program covers a wider range of services and supports for a greater number of people to help more people with disabilities get the workplace accommodations, adaptive technology and devices, and other things that can be barriers to finding and maintaining a job.

And she’ll fight to increase funding for the program so that it can serve everyone who would benefit from assistance under it.

She’ll expand accessible, affordable transportation and housing options, which are key supports for anyone participating in the workforce.

Federal civil rights laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act already require that our transportation systems and housing projects be fully accessible. However, these accommodations still have accessibility issues because efforts to make the projects fully accessible are frequently not done at the front-end of the project.

For example, more than a quarter of rail stations across the country are not fully accessible to people with disabilities. The same is true of 12% of the U.S. rail fleet.

Kamala will address this by taking executive action to direct the Department of Transportation and the Department of Housing and Urban Development to require that funding recipients submit plans detailing how their projects will be fully accessible prior to receiving funding.

She’ll fight to pass the IDEA Full Funding Act to make sure that students with disabilities are learning in classrooms that have funding to ensure they can get the education they deserve, which is key to ensuring long-term economic opportunity.
And she’ll direct her education secretary to increase enforcement of civil rights laws designed to protect that right to an education.

And she’ll work to increase resources to better prepare teachers to meet the needs of students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms and expand access to post-secondary education for people with disabilities.

She’ll fight to finally ratify U.S. participation in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to affirm American leadership in fighting for the civil rights of people with disabilities around the world.

She’ll fight to pass the Working Families Tax Credit to allow people without dependent children to take advantage of the Earned Income Tax Credit. And she’ll make the Child Tax Credit fully refundable which would be particularly beneficial to families who have children with disabilities.

Because quality, affordable health care is core to economic security, she’ll fight to pass her Medicare for All plan which addresses the significant barriers to quality health care that children and adults with disabilities face.

Kamala’s plan fully covers comprehensive long-term services and supports, as well as assistive technologies and Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) services that are critical to children with disabilities. It also ensures that those long-term services and supports are consumer-directed and are provided in home- and community-based settings.

And it ensures that when families move, or people with disabilities change jobs, their coverage moves with them so that they have uninterrupted access to the care and services they need.

She’ll ensure that people with disabilities impacted by disasters have the services and other civil rights protections they are entitled to under the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, so they can return home, to work and school at the same time as the rest of the disaster impacted community.

And, she’ll make sure the federal government leads by example.

Kamala will recommit us to the goal President Obama established in 2010 to make the federal government a model inclusive employer and strongly enforce Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act. She will direct agencies to create updated plans for how to make the recruitment, hiring, and retention of people with disabilities a priority in her administration. And she’ll make sure this diverse leadership is represented in senior positions and that there are opportunities for promotion.

Kamala will also take executive action to ensure that the technology the federal government buys, develops, or uses is fully accessible, as is currently required by federal law. This will include requiring each agency to implement a plan to ensure that any new technology developed or acquired is fully accessible before it is deployed, as well as doing an analysis of existing technology that is not compliant and develop a timeline for updating it.

And Kamala will create new senior-level positions in the White House to make sure that the priorities for people with disabilities are incorporated across all of her policymaking, particularly on the Domestic Policy Council and the economic work of her administration.

• Disability
• Kamala Harris
• Disability Community

Cannibis Use as a Risk Factor

In The Politics of Autism, I discuss various ideas about what causes the condition. Here is just a partial list of correlates, risk factors, and possible causes that have been the subject of serious studies:

• Pesticides;
• Air pollution and proximity to freeways;
• Maternal thyroid issues;
• Autoimmune disorders;
• Induced labor;
• Preterm birth;
• Fever;  
• Birth by cesarean section;
• Anesthesia during cesarean sections;
• Maternal and paternal obesity;
• Maternal diabetes;
• Maternal and paternal age;
• Grandparental age;
• Maternal post-traumatic stress disorder;
• Smoking during pregnancy;
• Antidepressant use during pregnancy;
• Polycystic ovary syndrome;
• Infant opioid withdrawal;
• Zinc deficiency;
• Sulfate deficiency;
• Processed foods;
• Maternal occupational exposure to solvents;
• Estrogen in the womb;
• Morning sickness;
• Paternal family history.

From the Ottawa Hospital:

In the largest study of its kind, Ottawa researchers found that children whose mothers reported using cannabis during pregnancy were at greater risk of autism. The incidence of autism was 4 per 1000 person-years among children exposed to cannabis in pregnancy, compared to 2.42 among unexposed children. The findings were published in the prestigious medical journal Nature Medicine.

Recreational cannabis is now legal in Canada, but that doesn't mean it's safe for people who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Health Canada and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada recommend against these populations using cannabis, and health warnings to this effect appear on cannabis packaging.

"Despite these warnings, there is evidence that more people are using cannabis during pregnancy," said Dr. Mark Walker, Chief of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Newborn Care at The Ottawa Hospital, professor at the University of Ottawa and senior author on the study. "This is concerning, because we know so little about how cannabis affects pregnant women and their babies. Parents-to-be should inform themselves of the possible risks, and we hope studies like ours can help."

The research team reviewed data from every birth in Ontario between 2007 and 2012, before recreational cannabis was legalized. Of the half a million women in the study, about 3,000 (0.6 percent) reported using cannabis during pregnancy.

The researchers had previously found that cannabis use in pregnancy was linked to an increased risk of preterm birth, and created an animated video to summarize their findings. In that study, they found that women who used cannabis during pregnancy often used other substances including tobacco, alcohol and opioids.

Considering those findings, in the current study the researchers specifically looked at 2,200 women who reported using only cannabis during pregnancy, and no other substances. They found that babies born to this group still had an increased risk of autism compared to those who did not use cannabis.

The researchers do not know how much cannabis the women were using, how often, at what time during their pregnancy, or how it was consumed. They also note that while they tried to control for other factors that could influence neurological development, their study can still only show association—not cause and effect.

As cannabis becomes more socially acceptable, health-care researchers are mindful that some parents-to-be might think it can be used to treat morning sickness.

"In the past, we haven't had good data on the effect of cannabis on pregnancies," said Dr. Daniel Corsi, Epidemiologist at The Ottawa Hospital and BORN Ontario, which is affiliated with the CHEO Research Institute. "This is one of the largest studies on this topic to date. We hope our findings will help women and their health-care providers make informed decisions."

Women who are thinking about or currently using cannabis during pregnancy should talk to their health-care provider to help make an informed choice about what is best for them and their baby.

Biden Would End Subminimum Wage for People with Disabilities

In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the issue's role in presidential campaigns.

Sarah Katz at The Atlantic:

Biden’s disability plan, released in late May, includes a promise to work with Congress to pass the Transformation to Competitive Employment Act. The act would provide grants for which states can apply to help employers phase out the subminimum wage and integrate workers with disabilities into their community over a period of six years.

Introduced in 2019 by Bob Casey, the Democratic senator from Pennsylvania, and co-sponsored by 59 Democrats and seven Republicans in both houses, the legislation is the product of a yearslong effort. Since the civil-rights movement in the 1960s, disability-rights activists have decried the subminimum wage as discriminatory, and federal lawmakers have made several unsuccessful attempts to abolish it. Their efforts have been thwarted time and again by lobbyists for large subminimum-wage employers, such as Goodwill, who argue that eliminating the subminimum wage would deprive people with disabilities of work opportunities. Neil Romano, the chair of the National Council on Disability, says these lobbyists often have the “single most important weapon” in tow: parents or guardians of someone in a workshop who fear for their loved one’s prospects in the mainstream workforce.

But Biden and an increasing number of lawmakers today are resolute about getting rid of the submimimum wage, arguing that it conflicts with existing policy meant to protect people with disabilities from discrimination, including the ADA. Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, for example, has been pushing federal legislation, including the bill Biden supports.
...

Until President Donald Trump’s 2016 run, disability rights were largely uncontentious and not associated with a particular party. The ADA, for example, was enacted by a Republican president, George H. W. Bush. However, after Trump mocked the Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Serge F. Kovaleski, who has a physical disability, and after reports that Trump has been repeatedly sued for violations of the ADA, disability issues entered the mainstream political conversation. For the first time in history, they became a focus of a major-party presidential nominee’s campaign, as Hillary Clinton pledged to ban the subminimum wage..

..
Some states have also already ended or begun phasing out the subminimum wage and sheltered workshops. In 2002, Vermont became the first state to abolish the subminimum wage—and, data show, has been the most successful at integrating people with disabilities into the mainstream workforce. Within three years of sheltered workshops’ closure, 80 percent of former workshop workers found employment. Today, the state’s integrated employment rate for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities is twice the national average: 38 percent, compared with a rate of 19 percent nationally.

At least six states have followed Vermont, including New Hampshire, Maryland, Alaska, Oregon, Nevada, and Maine. In 2019, Texas mandated that all state contractors increase their wages for workers with disabilities to the federal minimum wage by 2022. To date, 40 states have adopted “Employment First” legislation or state policy aimed at integrating workers with disabilities into the community.

RespectAbility Guide to Virtual Education

 In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the day-to-day challenges facing autistic people and their families. Those challenges get far more intense during disasters.  And coronavirus is proving to be the biggest disaster of all. Providing education is proving to be very difficult.

From RespectAbility:

Whether you are a student with a disability or an adult (parent, guardian, teacher or otherwise) who is championing success for a student with a disability, this guide is for you. Our goal is to be a timesaver for students with disabilities, as well as for the adults in their lives who care about them. This guide includes resources that can help pave the best educational and social-emotional path possible during this pandemic.

Download the PDF or accessible Word document or view each section of the toolkit by following the links below:

• Introduction
• Acknowledgements
• Virtual Resource Guides by Other Organizations
• Homeschool Programs
• Additional Virtual Resources
• Social-Emotional and Mental Health Resources
• Live Synchronous Learning Opportunities
• State Parent Centers’ COVID-19 Resource Website Links
• Legal Rights and Special Education Resources

To ask a question or add a resource, contact Debbie Fink at DebbieF@RespectAbility.org.

This guide is one of several such guides that the team from RespectAbility has produced during spring/summer 2020. Other resources include our Finding a Job as a Person With a Disability in Los Angeles career pathways guide, our COVID-19 Economic Benefits How-To guide, and our COVID-19 Pandemic and People with Disabilities guide. Best of luck!

We hope this resource has been of use to you – feel free to share this resource guide with others whom you think it will help!

Russian Antivax Efforts, 2020

In The Politics of Autism, I look at the discredited notion that vaccines cause autism.  Russian trolls have spread the myth via social media.  They are also spreading other vaccine disinformation.  Antivaxxers are doing Putin's work for him.

Amanda Seitz at AP:

A false report claiming five Ukrainians had died after taking an American-made coronavirus vaccine spread in just a matter of days from a small Kremlin-friendly website to an audience of thousands in U.S.-based Facebook groups.

Russian media outlets picked up the claim, and soon social media users in the U.S. were sharing screenshots and links to those articles — all as 30,000 Americans were preparing to roll up their sleeves for shots of an experimental COVID-19 vaccine late last month.

The fast dissemination of a single report from an obscure Ukrainian website to crowds of Facebook users highlights the ease with which pro-Russian websites can feed misinformation into American internet circles. In fact, one of the websites that picked up the report was identified by the U.S. State Department this week as being part of a network of proxy misinformation websites being used by the Russian government.

As various countries race to produce a successful coronavirus vaccine, disinformation experts are bracing for a steady drum of misleading claims and propaganda aimed at undermining competing countries’ efforts to develop an antidote. Misinformation could raise distrust and fear around a vaccine, threatening government leaders’ hopes of ending the pandemic. And the U.S., which is readying plans to deliver 300 million doses to Americans starting next year, if a successful vaccine is identified, could be a prime target.