Media Teleconference Advisory: Penn Bioethicist Takes on Bachmann’s Claims on Vaccine Safety
Arthur Caplan, PhD, director of the Center for Bioethics in the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, last week challenged presidential candidate Michele Bachmann to produce evidence to back up her televised claims that the HPV vaccine – which prevents the strains of the virus that cause cervical cancer -- has "very dangerous consequences" including causing “mental retardation.” Combining forces with a University of Minnesota colleague, Caplan called on Bachmann to produce a person within a week that had, indeed, been made “retarded” by the HPV vaccine, as verified by three doctors that Caplan and Bachmann agreed upon. If the claims proved true, Caplan vowed to give $10,000 of his own money to a charity of her choice. If not, she would have to give $10,000 dollars to a charity of his choosing.
The challenge expires Thursday, September 22 at noon. To date, neither Bachmann nor representatives from her campaign have responded to Caplan. Instead, on Tuesday she indicated she had no information to support the allegations she made, and had merely been repeating a story she had been told. No case has been brought forward which satisfies the straightforward terms of Kaplan’s challenge.
But, the fear her statements prompted have important consequences for public health, Caplan says. He will be available to respond to questions from the media during a teleconference at 1:30 p.m. EDT on Thursday, during which he will discuss:
- the importance of providing factual information to the public about vaccines against cervical cancer and other illnesses
- the need for a science- and fact-based discussion about mandates for vaccines during political debates
- the need for partnership between medical professionals and the media to address vaccine fear-mongering tactics and their adverse impact on world health
- the importance of calling on candidates and politicians to account for their sources when citing biomedical science and health information for political purposes
"In running against vaccines, Bachmann is willing to dissemble and lie about vaccine safety to try and score political points," Caplan wrote this week on the Hastings Center Bioethics Forum Blog. "She is also apparently willing to sacrifice the lives of young women in the U.S. and around the world to cancer, as well as others who may die of whooping cough or flu to her political ambition by impugning the safety and efficacy of vaccines and vaccine mandates."
Members of the media who wish to dial in to Caplan’s Thursday teleconference are asked to contact Holly Auer at 215-349-5659 or holly.auer@uphs.upenn.edu to receive dial-in instructions.