Items 1 through 12 have been deleted, since they are primarily for families
living in Virginia and Maryland, and I did not want to send useless
information to the folks in the rest of the country. However, please let me
know if you live in Virginia, Maryland or DC; so that I can add you to my
private email distribution list for events in those states.


13. "Hospital Reveals Details Of Alleged Patient Sex Abuse- Therapist
Suspected Of Photographing, Molesting Defenseless Children" dated 9 March
2006 by NBC 7/39 San Diego News at
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/7858969/detail.html
<http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/7858969/detail.html> .

"A tip from an Internet user led to the arrest of a therapist at Children's
Hospital on suspicion of photographing and sexually molesting young
patients, officials confirmed Thursday. At an afternoon news conference,
hospital officials said Wayne Bleyle, 54, a respiratory therapist at the
hospital's convalescent center, was arrested Wednesday on charges associated
with possession of child pornography and child molestation. "We are
absolutely devastated, as I'm sure you can imagine, that any individual
working at Children's could be involved in such activity," Children's
Hospital President and CEO Blair Sadler told reporters. "We are outraged
that an individual who has walked among us, helping heal children day in and
day out, would be capable of betraying those same children, their families,
co-workers, the mission of the hospital and the trust of the entire
community," said Dr. Cynthia Kuelbs, chief of the hospital's medical staff.
Bleyle has worked at Children's Hospital since 1980. He has been at the
59-bed convalescent hospital for the last 10 years, Sadler said. Police
first notified the hospital that young patients there may have been victims
of Bleyle a week ago, Sadler said. Police did not arrest Bleyle immediately
because they were continuing to collect evidence in the case, but Sadler
said the hospital took immediate steps to prevent Bleyle from having access
to patients. ..."

14. "Therapist Accused Of Molesting Young Patients" dated 9 March 2006 by
NBC 7/39 San Diego News at
<http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/7845893/detail.html>
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/7845893/detail.html.

"Sources close to a major criminal investigation say an employee of
Children's Hospital has been arrested on suspicion of sexually molesting
young patients. Wayne Bleyle, 54, works in the hospital's convalescent
center, which is in a separate building from the main hospital. He is
accused of sexually assaulting and taking pictures of several children being
treated at the convalescent center, NBC 7/39 reported. He was booked at San
Diego County Jail on multiple charges of manufacturing and distributing
child pornography and committing lewd acts with children, deputies told NBC
7/39. One source called Bleyle's case the most vulgar and vile case San
Diego has ever seen. Bleyle is a respiratory therapist. Records show that
he became licensed in 1985 and has never been cited or faced disciplinary
action for professional misconduct. Sources close to the investigation said
that at least nine children are being investigated as possible victims of
Bleyle. The children treated at the convalescent center, which is right next
to the main hospital, have long-term disabilities. Some patients stay there
for years. Bleyle lives in Santee. Neighbors told NBC 7/39 that an
undercover police officer has been stationed near the home for three days,
apparently for surveillance. NBC 7/39 contacted officials at Children's
Hospital, but they would not confirm or deny that Bleyle was being
investigated. They have scheduled a news conference Thursday to announce "a
major criminal investigation." Children's Hospital President and CEO Blair
Sadler and San Diego Police Chief William Landsdowne are scheduled to be at
the news conference, NBC 7/39 reported."

15. "Prosecutor: Therapist May Have Had Hundreds Of Victims" dated 10 March
2006 from KNSD-TV at <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11768980/>
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11768980/.

"A therapist accused of molesting brain-damaged children at a long-term care
hospital pleaded not guilty Friday afternoon. Wayne Bleyle, 54, of Santee,
was arrested Wednesday. He is accused of molesting and taking pornographic
photographs of children under his care at the Children's Rehabilitation
Hospital. He has worked as a respiratory therapist for the hospital the last
10 years. Deputy District Attorney Laura Gunn requested that Bleyle be held
without bail, calling the defendant a threat to public safety and a flight
risk. She said the case was the worst example of child abuse imaginable. She
said he began molesting young patients in 1996 and had hundreds of victims.
"He averaged about two kids a week and specifically chose children who were
the most brain-damaged, the most comatose, the most non-verbal -- the
children who could never say anything about it," Gunn said. Police said
Bleyle was a prolific trader of Internet pornography and that they found
tens of thousands of child porn images on two computers they seized from him
last week. After listening to the evidence, Judge David Szumowski raised
Bleyle's bail to $5 million."

16. "Study links vaccines containing mercury with autism" dated 10 March
2006 by Roman Bystrianyk from the Health Sentinel at
<http://www.healthsentinel.com/org_news.php?id=082&title=Study+links+vaccine
s+containing+mercury+with+autism&event=org_news_print_list_item>
http://www.healthsentinel.com/org_news.php?id=082&title=Study+links+vaccines
+containing+mercury+with+autism&event=org_news_print_list_item.

"A 1948 article in the journal Pediatrics opens with, "Inflammatory
reactions involving various parts of the nervous system following injections
or various sera or vaccines have long been known". In that paper they
discuss 15 instances in children at Boston Children's Hospital that
developed "acute cerebral symptoms within a period of hours after
administration of pertussis vaccine." During the same time, the 1940s to
the 1950s widespread use of the DTP vaccine (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis
- more commonly know as whooping cough) came into use. Analysis of the
historical data available shows that the recorded rate of whooping cough
slowly fell coinciding with the use of the vaccine. However, using
additional historical references from England - which maintained the most
accurate historical disease mortality records - shows that before widespread
vaccination the death rate from whooping cough had already declined by
approximately 98.8 percent from its peak recorded in the 1860s. A 1996
article in Pediatrics noted that a large controlled study, the NCES or
National Childhood Encephalopathy Study, found that, "a significant
association exists between the occurrence of acute neurologic illness and
DTP vaccination with the preceding 7 days." In 1994, an IOM (Institute of
Medicine) committee concluded that the, "balance of evidence is consistent
with a causal relation between DTP and chronic nervous system dysfunction in
children whose serious acute neurological illness occurred within 7 days of
DTP vaccination." However, a 1991 American Academy of Pediatrics report
indicated that severe problems were rare. Although half the children were
reported to be "fretful" or have fevers, severe neurological problems were
reported to be 1 in 140,000 to 1 in 300,000. Seizures were reported to be 1
in 7,500, persistent screaming as 1 in 100, and unusual, high-pitched cry as
1 in 1,000. ..."

17. "Autism Phenome Project Aims To Redefine Autism By Identifying Distinct
Subtypes" dated 10 March 2006 from the UC Davis Medical Investigation of
Neurodevelopmental Disorders Institute at
<http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=39210&nfid=rssfeeds>
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=39210&nfid=rssfeeds.

"Multidisciplinary teams of physicians and scientists at the University of
California, Davis, M.I.N.D. Institute have launched the nation's most
comprehensive assessment of children with autism to detect the biological
and behavioral patterns that define subtypes of the disorder. Called the
Autism Phenome Project, the large-scale, longitudinal study will enroll
1,800 children -- 900 with autism, 450 with developmental delay and 450 who
are typically developing -- who will undergo a thorough medical evaluation
in addition to systematic analyses of their immune systems, brain structures
and functions, genetics, environmental exposures and blood proteins.
Children will be 2 to 4 years old when they begin participating in the
study, and their development will continue to be evaluated over the course
of several years. The first phase of the research is funded by the UC Davis
M.I.N.D. Institute and philanthropic donations. "Children with autism
clearly are not all the same," said David G. Amaral, research director of
the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute and co-director of the project. "The
tremendous variation leads us to believe that autism is a group of disorders
rather than a single disorder -- several autisms versus one autism. We are
determined to provide the specific biomedical and behavioral criteria that
accurately define distinct subtypes." ..."

18. "A 'way out of a lonely place'- In a children's book, autistic writer
gives a look into her world" dated 12 March 2006 by Rona Marech from the
Baltimore Sun at
<http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.autism12mar12,0,4914162.st
ory?coll=bal-newsaol-headlines>
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.autism12mar12,0,4914162.sto
ry?coll=bal-newsaol-headlines.

"Sarah Ann Stup bends over a small, cream-colored keyboard. Her eyes are
hooded, face hidden. Her middle finger, crowned with a chipped half-moon of
lavender polish, hovers, extended, over the little machine propped on her
dining room table. "It's OK, honey, just go ahead and start," her mother,
Judy Stup, whispers. Sarah Stup, who is 22 and has autism, turns the device
on and off. She squints, then fusses with a piece of tape. Her eyes flicker
up, seemingly unseeing. She rubs her nose, looks off to the side. Slowly,
her head tipped close to the table, she begins poking jerkily on the keys
before her. She taps then pauses, taps, pauses. Finally, a ribbon of curling
paper inches out of the side of the clacking machine and rests on the dining
room table. This is how Sarah Stup talks and writes. This is how she asks
questions and writes poems, and most recently, how she painstakingly, one
letter at a time, wrote Do-Si-Do with Autism, a children's book.
Illustrated by
<http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/visitor/college/bal-hl-villajulie
,0,873213.story?coll=bal-newsaol-headlines> Villa Julie College students
Matthew Starchak and Libby Sanders, the book tells the story of an autistic
turtle named Taylor and his trials at school. The book and illustrations,
along with selections from Stup's writings and photographs chronicling her
life, are installed at an exhibition at Villa Julie's Stevenson campus. The
self-published book will go on sale at the end of the month. ..."

19. "Researchers: Does 'brain fat' dictate risky behavior?" dated 13 March
2006 by Scot LaFee from The Paramus Post at
<http://www.paramuspost.com/article.php/20060312140607502>
http://www.paramuspost.com/article.php/20060312140607502.

"In popular vernacular, the human brain is "gray matter" - the 100 billion
or so nerve cell bodies that form the basis and biology of our minds, and
give the brain its characteristic pinkish-gray hue. But white matters, too.
"White matter" is myelin, a pale lipid or fat that envelopes the trillions
of fibrous axons connecting neuron to neuron, making the brain a singular,
functioning whole. While gray matter is typically credited with defining
who we are, white matter tends to be described as mere "insulation." A
professor of neurology at the University of California Los Angeles begs to
differ. "The single biggest factor that makes us human is not just our
brain, but the amount of myelin in it," says Dr. George Bartzokis. "Myelin
is one of evolution's latest inventions. Vertebrates have it; invertebrates
don't. And humans have more than anything else."
Over a lifetime, Bartzokis says, the brain busily sheathes axons in myelin -
a process called myelination that not only insulates axons from external
dangers but dramatically speeds the transmission and quality of signals
between nerve cells. "Think of the Internet. Myelination makes axons more
efficient. It increases bandwidth. Axons are able to do more so our brains
are able to do more." It is myelination, as much as any developmental
process in our brains, he says, that determines the character and nature of
a person's mind and personality. In a paper published late last year in
Adolescent Psychiatry, Bartzokis hypothesized that the brash, risky behavior
of teens and young adults is related, at least in part, to incomplete
myelination in critical thinking areas of the brain. Beyond that, he says,
incomplete or disrupted myelination contributes to or worsens autism,
attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) and schizophrenia. It also
helps explain why younger people are more vulnerable to drug and alcohol
abuse. ..."

20. "D.C. Schools to Test New Special-Ed Rule" dated 14 March 2006 by
<http://projects.washingtonpost.com/staff/email/v.+dion+haynes/> V. Dion
Haynes from The Washington Post at
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/13/AR2006031302
083.html
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/13/AR200603130
2083.html> .

"The D.C. Board of Education last night approved a controversial proposal
that will place the burden of proof on parents who seek due-process hearings
to challenge the adequacy of instructional plans for their special-needs
children. Board members, who have been divided over the issue since it was
introduced late last year, debated whether the policy change would reduce
the system's $300 million special education budget, as intended, or would
make it more difficult for parents seeking help. As a compromise, the board
agreed to enact the policy for a year and then evaluate it. The measure,
which takes effect immediately, will be evaluated to determine whether the
number of due-process hearings has decreased, whether the school system is
winning more of those cases and whether more disputes are settled in
resolution meetings. "Saving money would be the critical measure," said
Vice President Carolyn N. Graham, who chaired a committee that studied how
to improve special education services and reduce the budget. For more than
30 years, board policy has placed the burden on proof on the school system,
largely recognizing that its programs are deficient and that the schools
often are unable to fully meet special education needs. But in November,
the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Maryland law that puts the burden of proof
in special education cases on parents, requiring them to show that a school
district's plans will not meet their child's needs. Soon after, D.C. school
administrators said they would seek to align their law with Maryland's.
Officials from the school system's general counsel's office initially
suggested that the policy change could help reduce the system's special
education budget. Those costs are driven in part by an inordinate number of
due process hearings, which result in millions of dollars in tuition fees
when the system is ordered to place students in private schools. Last
night, newly hired general counsel Abbey Hairston told board members that
she was uncertain whether the new policy would save money. The benefit, she
said, would be in giving parents the incentive to work harder to resolve
their disputes without having to resort to due process hearings. "In
reviewing this, the savings of money is not the primary issue," Hairston
said. "I think we need to find ways for people not to use litigation to
solve their problems." ..."

21. "Rejection Slip- When a Child Is Excluded by Peers, Learning Also
Suffers" dated 14 March 2006 by
<http://projects.washingtonpost.com/staff/email/sandra+g.+boodman/> Sandra
G. Boodman from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/13/AR200603130
1318.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/13/AR2006031301
318.html.

"It's a time-honored stereotype: the social outcast who ignores the derision
of classmates to become a straight-A student, the kid who madly waves his or
her hand in a desperate attempt to answer the teacher's every question. Yet
the reality, it seems, is starkly different: Researchers who followed 380
Midwestern children from the ages of 5 to 11 found that those who were
chronically rejected by their classmates were more likely to withdraw from
school activities and scored lower on standardized tests than their more
popular peers. "We're talking about kids whose classmates don't let them
sit with them in the cafeteria," said lead researcher Eric S. Buhs, an
assistant professor of educational psychology at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln. "This is what happens when a whole group demonstrates, 'We
don't want you around.' " Many educational experts regard peer exclusion as
a form of bullying and agree that group rejection is more insidious and
harder to address than overt one-on-one acts such as shoving a classmate
into a locker or spreading vicious gossip. Ostracism is, they say,
particularly devastating to its victims: the only girl not invited to a
classmate's sleepover or the boy no one wants to play with at recess.
Peer-group rejection, Buhs and his co-authors report in a study funded by a
grant from the National Institutes of Health, starts as early as
kindergarten. It appears to affect boys and girls equally. And it often
triggers a vicious circle that can cause long-term psychological damage and
impair a child's academic performance. ..."

22. "Silent Struggle: A New Theory of Pregnancy" dated 14 March 2006 by
Carl Zimmer from The New York Times at
<http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/14/health/14preg.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/14/health/14preg.html?_r=1&oref=slogin.

"
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics
/pregnancy/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier> Pregnancy can be the most
wonderful experience life has to offer. But it can also be dangerous. Around
the world, an estimated 529,000 women a year die during pregnancy or
childbirth. Ten million suffer injuries, infection or disability. To David
Haig, an evolutionary biologist at
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/h/harvard
_university/index.html?inline=nyt-org> Harvard, these grim statistics raise
a profound puzzle about pregnancy. "Pregnancy is absolutely central to
reproduction, and yet pregnancy doesn't seem to work very well," he said.
"If you think about the heart or the kidney, they're wonderful bits of
engineering that work day in and day out for years and years. But pregnancy
is associated with all sorts of medical problems. What's the difference?"
The difference is that the heart and the kidney belong to a single
individual, while pregnancy is a two-person operation. And this operation
does not run in perfect harmony. Instead, Dr. Haig argues, a mother and her
unborn child engage in an unconscious struggle over the nutrients she will
provide it. Dr. Haig's theory has been gaining support in recent years, as
scientists examine the various ways pregnancy can go wrong. His theory
also explains a baffling feature of developing fetuses: the copies of some
genes are shut down, depending on which parent they come from. Dr. Haig has
also argued that the same evolutionary conflicts can linger on after birth
and even influence the adult brain. New research has offered support to this
idea as well. By understanding these hidden struggles, scientists may be
able to better understand psychological disorders like
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics
/depression/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier> depression and
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics
/autism/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier> autism. ..."

23. "New Degree Helps Tackle Needs of Children With Autism" dated 14 March
2006 in a press release from the University of Ulster at
<http://www.ulster.ac.uk/news/releases/2006/2109.html>
http://www.ulster.ac.uk/news/releases/2006/2109.html.

"The first Masters degree in Ireland aimed at addressing the needs of
children with autism has been launched at the University of Ulster. From
September 2006 the University's School of Psychology at Coleraine will offer
an MSc in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA). The course is aimed at
education and health professionals who are working with children and adults
with autism. It will also benefit people working with learning
disabilities, general behaviour management, parent training, community
development, adult mental health or gerontology. The new Masters programme
was spearheaded by the community work of Dr Mickey Keenan, who set up the
charity Parents' Education as Autism Therapists (PEAT). PEAT has been
working alongside the School of Psychology to help plan the course. The
charity has long been campaigning for autism intervention that is based upon
sound scientific evidence. ABA is the only intervention and educational
approach that has strong scientific evidence to support it. The course
team, which includes Professor Julian Leslie, Dr Mickey Keenan, Dr Denis
O'Hora, and Dr Robert Bones, have secured an International Development Grant
from the Association of Behavior Analysis International in America to help
fund the programme. Professor Leslie, Course Director said: "Professionals
will now be able to access accredited training in ABA which will give them
the additional skills to make a real difference for children with autism.
This is a real step forward for autism treatment here. "The course is the
only one of its kind in Ireland and it is intended that graduates will
become Certified Behaviour Analysts. The content of the course has been
approved by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board". ..."

24. "Determination beats all- Before they became top spellers, two had to
conquer adversity" dated 14 March 2006 by Bill Lohmann from the Richmond
Times-Dispatch at
<http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?c=MGArticle&cid=113783469606
4&pagename=RTD/MGArticle/RTD_BasicArticle>
http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?c=MGArticle&cid=1137834696064
&pagename=RTD/MGArticle/RTD_BasicArticle.

"Dale Wolf and Bobby Jacobs know that one by heart. Dale, 13, won the
Richmond Public Schools division spelling bee, while Bobby, 12, captured the
Home School division. Both will compete Saturday at 2 p.m. at Mary Munford
Elementary with champion spellers from throughout the Richmond area to
determine who will represent the region in the Scripps National Spelling
Bee. The event is sponsored by the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Considering
what Dale and Bobby have been through, they're already big winners for
having made it this far. Dale has mild cerebral palsy, and Bobby has
Asperger syndrome. Both know what it's like to wrestle with challenges
bigger than four-syllable words. When asked about all that he's overcome,
Dale shrugged and said, "I don't think about it much." He doesn't need to
think about it because he's lived it. Dale was born prematurely, arriving
three months early and weighing less than 3 pounds. He spent the first two
months of his life in neonatal intensive care at what was then VCU's Medical
College of Virginia Hospitals. He didn't take his first, halting steps until
he was 3, and he's undergone numerous surgeries, including one at age 5 when
doctors operated on his spine. After that, Dale had to learn to walk all
over again. "He's the toughest kid," said his mother, Carol Wolf, who is a
member of the Richmond School Board. ..."

25. "Bush meets autistic hoops hero" dated 14 March 2006 from CNN.com at
<http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/03/14/bush.hoopshero.ap/index.html>
http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/03/14/bush.hoopshero.ap/index.html.

"President Bush is the latest in a string of high-profile fans to call on
Jason McElwain, the autistic basketball manager who drew national cheers by
scoring 20 points in four minutes for his high school team. On his way to
Canandaigua, New York, Tuesday to speak at Medicare events, Bush stopped at
an airport near here and greeted McElwain -- accompanied by his parents and
coach -- and called him "a special person." "Our country was captivated by
an amazing story on the basketball court," the president told reporters
gathered on the tarmac, his arm draped around the 17-year-old senior, with
Air Force One, the presidential jet, in the background. "It's the story of a
young man who found his touch on the basketball court, which in turn touched
the hearts of citizens all around the country." ..."

26. "When Sedated, Was Autistic Man Already Deceased?" dated 15 March 2006
by Craig Adams from THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS at
<http://tinyurl.com/lgurq> http://tinyurl.com/lgurq.

"Could Hansel Cunningham have been dead or dying when Des Plaines Fire Dept.
paramedics tried to sedate him? A spokesperson for the Cook County Medical
Examiner's office indicated that might have been the case. On Nov. 20,
Hansel Cunningham, 30, a resident of a group home in the 800 block of South
Golf Cul de Sac, had bitten a caregiver on the hands and arms. The caregiver
called police who used pepper spray to try to subdue him, then fired
electrically charged Tasers at him twice. Police said fire department
paramedics injected him with a sedative to help subdue him. Paramedics on
the scene rushed to Cunningham's aid after he experienced difficulty
breathing. Later that day he was pronounced dead at Northwest Community
Hospital in Arlington Heights. However, a spokesperson for the Cook County
Medical Examiner's office stated the toxicology report on Cunningham was
negative, indicating that no sedative was in his system. "He might have
been dead already," the spokesperson said on condition of anonymity. "If
someone's dying or dead already, it won't go through the bloodstream." The
only drug in Cunningham's blood was an anti-seizure medicine he was taking
regularly, said the Medical Examiner's office. "I have no comment on that,"
said Des Plaines Fire Chief John Heavey. "Everything's going through the
city attorney." Des Plaines City Attorney Dave Wiltse stated, "I don't know
what the status of that is." The Medical Examiner spokesperson also
clarified the cause of Cunningham's death was asphyxia due to restraint, not
positional asphyxia. "The word 'positional' is not on the death
certificate." The spokesperson explained that positional asphyxia means
someone is not physically able to get out of a position that has stopped his
or her breathing. The victim can fall or be pushed into a position where
their neck is pushed forward, blocking the airway. Asphyxia due to restraint
means someone or something held them in a position that restricts their
breathing. ..."

27. "Rule Keeps Disabled Away From Relatives- Report Criticizes Group Home
Policy" dated 16 March 2006 by
<http://projects.washingtonpost.com/staff/email/karlyn+barker/> Karlyn
Barker from The Washington Post at
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/15/AR200603150
0851.html>
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/15/AR2006031500
851.html.

"The District has one of the most restrictive policies in the country for
developmentally disabled residents of group homes who want to have overnight
visits with relatives and friends, according to a report by a longtime
advocacy group and residential provider. The Arc of the District of
Columbia Inc., which has provided a range of services for city residents
with developmental disabilities since 1950, said in its Feb. 28 report that
the District ranks 46th among states in the number of times people living in
Medicaid-funded group homes can make overnight visits in the community. The
District's policy permits 18 "leave days" a year, including hospital stays.
If a group home resident exceeds that 18-day limit, the home isn't
reimbursed, and the resident risks losing a bed in the facility.
Nationally, according to the report, eight states place no annual limits on
home visits, and 35 states allow an average of up to 44 days a year of home
or hospital leave. "It is unacceptable for the District of Columbia to have
a policy that keeps families apart," said Mary Lou Meccariello, executive
director of the organization. The city "should act immediately to bring its
policy in line with national standards so that people with developmental
disabilities and their families can spend time together." Leila Abrar, a
spokeswoman for the D.C. Health Department, said the agency recently decided
to temporarily add eight extra days for family visits. That will allow an
individual to be out of the group home overnight for a total of 26 days a
year, with the facility still receiving Medicaid payment for those days.
..."

28. "Vaccines the subject of new Congressional investigation" dated 17
March 2006 by Jon Brodkin from the MetroWest Daily News at
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=124699
<http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=124699> .

"Congress has asked for a new investigation into a potential link between
mercury-containing vaccines and autism, as some lawmakers claim the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention has inadequately researched the topic.
"If the federal government is going to have a study whose results will be
broadly accepted, such a study cannot be led by the CDC," Sen. Joseph
Lieberman, D-Conn., and seven other members of Congress wrote in a letter to
the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). A budget
appropriation approved by Congress urges the NIEHS to examine the Vaccine
Safety Datalink, a CDC database that follows 7 million immunized children
from 1990 to the present. Some lawmakers believe a new review of this
database may show a link between autism and thimerosal -- a vaccine
preservative containing mercury. A local parent who said he believes his
two autistic children were harmed by vaccines applauded Congress for
requesting a new investigation. The parent, Jared Hansen of Framingham, said
he thinks the CDC is reluctant to expose dangers of thimerosal because the
agency is responsible for ensuring public acceptance of its vaccination
program. "They've proven far more willing to overstate the risks of disease
and understate the danger of vaccination," Hansen said. "No one in their
right mind can say that giving mercury intravenously is a smart thing to
do." Autism rates soared during the 1990s when thimerosal was most heavily
used in childhood vaccines. Levels of mercury injected into infants were 120
times greater than federal safety limits for oral ingestion of mercury,
congressmen wrote to the NIEHS. Government officials asked manufacturers
in 1999 to remove the mercury-based preservative from vaccines, but it is
still used in flu and tetanus shots. ..."

29. "scarletThimerosal Update: The CDC's Scarlet Letter" by Bobbie Manning
in the March edition of Mothering Magazine at
<http://www.mothering.com/sections/news_bulletins/march2006.html#scarlet>
http://www.mothering.com/sections/news_bulletins/march2006.html#scarlet.

"March is roaring in like a lion for the Center for Disease Control (CDC) as
the controversy surrounding the autism thimerosal debate is capturing the
attention of the media in a flurry of news stories. On March 1, a new
peer-reviewed study published by Association of American Physicians and
Surgeons found autism rates declining following the removal from thimerosal
(mercury) from childhood vaccines. The study was widely reported and was
even picked up and reported by radio commentator icon, Paul Harvey, "the
link between mercury & autism has been confirmed." Prepublication copy of
the article is posted at <http://www.jpands.org/> www.JPandS.org which
includes links to the VAERS and CDDS databases. Also on March 1, Robert F.
Kennedy, Jr. jumped back into the thimerosal controversy with an article
disclosing newly obtained letters written in 1999 between vaccine
manufacturer SmithKline Beecham (SKB) and CDC Director Jeffrey Kaplan. In
the documents SKB offers to supply mercury-free DtaP vaccines for the entire
U.S. pediatric population through 2000. In response, Director Kaplan does
not accept the manufacturers offer and states, the CDC will "continue to
provide States with a choice among currently licensed brands of DtaP
vaccine". Basically saying, thanks but no thanks. ..."

30. "Center Faulted In Death - Ohio Halts New Mentally Ill Patients" by
Sheila Mclaughlin from The Cinncinati Enquirer at
<http://tinyurl.com/ezkkg> http://tinyurl.com/ezkkg.

"State officials temporarily banned new admissions at a residential center
for the mentally retarded Monday after an investigation into the beating
death of an autistic man showed that Fairfield Center's staff failed to
protect the victim. The report by the Ohio Department of Health comes
almost three weeks after Joseph Beaudoin, a 50-year-old man with profound
mental retardation, was beaten and strangled. Police have charged Edward
"Teddy" Shuman, his 20-year-old roommate of six days who was known to have
violent outbursts, with murder in the attack. ..."

31. "Autism Is A World" from CNN makes its debut by Filmmaker Gerardine
Wurzburg's Film about Autistic Woman on Sunday, May 22. More info is at
http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/presents/index.autism.world.html
<http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/presents/index.autism.world.html> .

"Nominated for an Academy Award, "Autism Is A World" is a rare look at
autism through the words of a young woman who lives with it. The film is
scheduled to be broadcast on May 22 at 8 p.m. ET on CNN. Autism Is a
World,a co-production of CNN Productions and State of the Art Inc., will
make its television premiere as a CNN Presents documentary on Sunday, May
22, at 8 p.m. (ET) The film, nominated for an Academy Award(r) for Best
Documentary Short Subject by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
in February, is a candid and compelling look into the mind of Sue Rubin, a
26-year-old Los Angeles woman living with autism. ..."


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