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Louisiana senator makes claims that vaccines cause autism

Posted at 12:03 PM, Apr 30, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-30 13:03:11-04

A Louisiana senator from Shreveport continued the now debunked narrative that vaccines cause autism while speaking on the Senate floor Monday.

Democrat State Sen. John Milkovich, of Shreveport, made the remarks about vaccines during a debate on a bill that would allow adults to opt into a voluntary statewide immunization database.

According to the Advocate, Milkovich claimed “autism did not exist” when he was growing up, and that “tissue from aborted babies is now used in vaccines.” He also suggested aluminum and mercury in vaccines are dangerous.

This is not the first time Milkovich has spoken about vaccines and autism. In 2017 he made similar statements on the Senate floor during a debate over a similar bill.

The bill in question Monday was introduced by Democratic State Sen Regina Barrow of Baton Rouge.

The bill passed by a 27 to 10 vote and is now headed to the House.

The CDC states that studies show no link between receiving vaccinations and the development of Autism.

Read more from The Advocate.