'91 MEMO WARNED OF MERCURY IN SHOTS

A memo from Merck & Co. shows that, nearly a decade
before the first public disclosure, senior executives
were concerned that infants were getting an elevated
dose of mercury in vaccinations containing a widely
used sterilizing agent. The March 1991 memo, obtained
by The Times, said that 6-month-old children who
received their shots on schedule would get a mercury
dose up to 87 times higher than guidelines for the
maximum daily consumption of mercury from fish. "When
viewed in this way, the mercury load appears rather
large," said the memo from Dr. Maurice R. Hilleman,
an internationally renowned vaccinologist. The memo
was prepared at a time when U.S. health authorities
were aggressively expanding their immunization
schedule by adding five new shots for children in
their first six months. Many of these shots, as well
as some previously included on the vaccine schedule,
contained thimerosal, an antibacterial compound that
is nearly 50% ethyl mercury, a neurotoxin.

http://www.latimes.com/archives/