Correcting this week’s misinformation: week of March 26, 2026

In an interview with Tucker Carlson, RFK Jr. claims that a study found vaccines increased autism risk and that officials hid or changed the results to cover it up.

RFK Jr. is likely talking about an early study from the CDC’s Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD) project. This study was led by a researcher named Thomas Verstraeten in 1999 and was approved by the CDC.

The Vaccine Safety Datalink is a system that tracks possible side effects from vaccines. It includes data from more than 12 million people. Researchers use this data to check if vaccines might be linked to health problems.

In this early study, researchers looked at whether the hepatitis B vaccine, which is given to babies, might be connected to developmental issues like autism. Here are some important points to understand:

• The first results showed a possible link, but the study was still early and not complete.
• When researchers studied the data again using better methods and more complete information, the link went away.
• A final study published in 2003 found no evidence that the hepatitis B vaccine causes autism.

So, even though the study and researcher are real, the early results were not final. The full scientific process showed that there was no connection.

Hepatitis B vaccination programs, including giving the vaccine at birth, have helped lower the number of hepatitis B cases around the world. Vaccinating newborns helps stop the spread of the disease and reduces related health problems.

Some claims say that a substance called thimerosal in the hepatitis B vaccine caused a rise in autism cases in the mid-1990s. There are problems with this claim.

First, studies show that thimerosal does not increase the risk of autism. Also, thimerosal has not been used in childhood vaccines since 2001. Second, autism diagnoses kept going up even after thimerosal was removed. This increase is mostly due to better awareness and changes in how autism is diagnosed.

In a video online, the McCullough Foundation claims that vaccines given years ago can cause babies now to die.

Here’s the bottom line: one part is true, the rest is unsupported or false.

1. “CDC data shows babies born are now dying at a >50% excess rate.”
   This is not true. CDC data does not show a 50% increase in infant deaths. The numbers changed only a little from 2020 to 2024. There was a small rise from 2021 to 2022, but no big increase after that. Overall, infant death rates have stayed fairly stable.
2. “Mississippi just declared a public health emergency over rising infant deaths.”
   This is true. In August 2025, Mississippi declared an emergency because infant deaths had gone up. The state reported a rate of 9.7 deaths per 1,000 births in 2024, which is the highest in over 10 years.
3. “Mississippi linked this to mRNA vaccine effects passed to babies.”
   This is not true. Mississippi’s report does not mention vaccines or mRNA. It says the main causes are birth defects, babies being born too early or too small, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and other health issues. The state is focusing on better care for mothers and babies.
4. “Infant death rates had been going down for 30 years but suddenly reversed after 2021 and keep rising.”
   This is false. Infant death rates have mostly gone down since the 1990s. There was a small increase from 2021 to 2022, but rates did not keep rising after that. They stayed about the same in 2023 and 2024.
5. “The causes of infant deaths match those seen in vaccinated adults.”
   There is no evidence for this. The main causes of infant deaths are things like birth defects, early birth, low weight, SIDS, injuries, and problems during pregnancy. These are common causes and are not linked to vaccines.
6. “A study proved that mRNA from vaccines passes to babies and causes deaths.”
   This is not proven. The study mentioned was small and looked only at placental tissue, not overall death rates. The researchers said they did not find a clear link to health outcomes. Other studies have mixed results, but none show that vaccines cause infant deaths.
7. What larger studies show about vaccination during pregnancy
   Large studies do not show that vaccines cause harm to babies. One large study found no increase in health problems in newborns and even showed lower risk for some serious issues.

In a viral tweet, one anti-vaxxer claims that bacterial meningitis is made up to push more vaccines on people.

A scary meningitis outbreak in the UK has sparked a new conspiracy theory. But this kind of idea is not new. It follows an old pattern of making people distrust doctors and public health leaders. These theories often claim the disease is fake or created on purpose, and that officials are using it to control people.

The outbreak in the UK is caused by a known type called meningococcal B. This same type has caused all college meningitis outbreaks in the U.S. since 2011. These outbreaks are usually controlled by giving vaccines, tracking who was exposed, and giving antibiotics. Not with lockdowns.

Meningococcal disease  is rare, but it can spread quickly and be very dangerous. It can cause serious infections in the brain or blood. Healthy kids and teens can die within hours. Some people who survive may lose limbs or have lasting brain damage. Vaccines are one of the best ways to stay protected from this disease.