New York Times Reporter Assesses Vaccine Study’s Retraction

In the wake of The Lancet medical journal fully retracting its 1998 study suggesting a link between the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine and autism, we spoke with New York Times public health reporter Gardiner Harris for some perspective on the significance.

The study’s author at the center of the controversy, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, sent an e-mail statement to the Los Angeles Times Wednesday emphasizing that the study did not confirm a link between MMR vaccine and autism and that “research into that possible connection is still ongoing.”

For more background and reactions to the story, read our full examination of the Lancet’s retraction and the public debate over vaccinations.