Does Jessica Biel vaccinate? Has she joined Robert F. Kennedy Jr as an anti vaxxer? Which other celebrities have spoken out on vaccines?

Despite partnering up with Robert F. Kennedy Jr to lobby against the SB 276 bill, Jessica Biel has insisted she is not an anti-vaxxer. But which celebrities have thrown their weight behind the controversial movement? 
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Megan C. Hills17 June 2019

Jessia Biel took some by surprise when she appeared to throw her weight behind the controversial anti-vaxxer movement.

Pictures of Biel with anti-vaccination campaigner Robert F. Kennedy Jr. emerged on Tuesday. Shared on Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s Instagram, Biel joined the son of RFK at the California State House and was seen in the state chambers in a photo gallery.

Biel joined Kennedy in lobbying against a California state bill called SB 276, which if passed would require individuals and their doctors to receive approval from a state public health officer (or one of their designees) if they wanted a medical exemption to immunization.

It goes one step further than current California state law, which rules that children can be exempted from mandatory vaccination if a licensed physician writes them a statement that explains “the specific nature and probable duration of their medical condition or circumstances”.

Robert F. Kennedy explained in an interview with The Daily Beast, “The biggest problem with the bill, which is something I think Jessica is concerned with is that a doctor who has made a determination—if he has found children in this state whose doctors have determined that they’re too fragile to receive vaccinations—this bill would overrule the doctors and force them to be vaccinated anyways.”

He continued that she was “an extremely effective advocate” and said she was “upset about this issue because of its particular cruelty” (the LA Times reported that the Department of Public Health had predicted SB 276 would see 40% of medical exemption applications rejected). He continued, “She has friends who have been vaccine-injured who would be forced to leave the state.”

Biel explained in another Instagram post that she was “not against vaccinations” and that she did “support children getting vaccinations”, however she was protesting against SB 276 because she wanted to “support families having the right to make educated medical decisions for their children alongside their physicians”.

Biel isn’t the only person in Hollywood to express strong views on vaccination, as many notable figures from Jim Carrey to Alicia Silverstone have criticised policy on them in the past.

Jim Carrey​

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In 2009, Carrey penned an essay for the Huffington Post on his views against vaccination. Despite that the link between autism and vaccinations has been widely debunked, Carrey continued to connect the two in his essay, in which he compared vaccines to smoking-related cancer and criticised the ‘vaccine court’. He also claimed that the medical industry was profiting from vaccines and called it a “bias of the most dangerous kind”.

Carrey said, “The truth is that no one without a vested interest in the profitability of vaccines has studied all 36 of them in depth.”

He has also used his Twitter account to address his views. He said he was “not anti-vaccine” but was “anti-thimerosal, anti-mercury” (thimerosal is a mercury-based ingredient).

Carrey has an autistic son with fellow anti-vaxxer Jenny McCarthy, who believes that vaccines caused his condition.

Jenny McCarthy

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Actor Jenny McCarthy is one of the most high profile anti-vaxx campaigners, claiming that a combination of vaccines had caused her and Carrey’s son’s autism and said to PBS, “I don’t think it was just the MMR shot that caused any kind of trigger with autism. I think it was a compilation of so many shots to a kid that obviously had some autoimmune disorders. So I would say maybe a couple of months, a month or so after the MMR, I started to notice some physical ailments such as constipation, rashes, eczema. That was like the first little sign. And then the train just kind of descended from there.”

She has since authored multiple books about the dangers of vaccination and beyond linking vaccination to autism, she has also claimed that the number of vaccinations children are subjected to in a short space of time may have a damaging effect on their health. She criticised the label “anti-vaccine” and claimed in 2010 that she was “pro-safe-vaccine-schedule”.

McCarthy has also previously claimed that she and Carrey cured their son’s autism by restricting him to a gluten-free diet. Ontario health minister Deb Matthews called McCarthy “outrageously irresponsible” for promoting her anti-vaccination claims and said, “The study she’s referred to has been discredited many times. There is absolutely no truth in that argument.”

Alicia Silverstone

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The actress wrote a parenting book in 2014 called The Kind Mama in which she cited two doctors Roizen and Oz - the latter has previously been sued for making reportedly false statements about everything from weight loss supplements to olive oil.

Silverstone wrote in her book, "While there has not been a conclusive study of the negative effects of such a rigorous one-size-fits-all, shoot-’em-up schedule, there is increasing anecdotal evidence from doctors who have gotten distressed phone calls from parents claiming their child was ‘never the same’ after receiving a vaccine. And I personally have friends whose babies were drastically affected in this way."

Her book was criticised not just for her anti-vaccination passage, but also because she claimed that women could cure postpartum depression and prevent miscarriages by sticking to a vegan diet.

Kat Von D

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Kat Von D’s stance on vaccinations has courted controversy in the past, as the vegan make-up guru made headlines when she announced her pregnancy as well as her and her husband’s future approach to parenting. In 2018, in a now-deleted Instagram post she wrote that she would be “raising a vegan child, without vaccinations”.

According to the NHS, some vaccines contain traces of pork gelatine which help stabilise them and “protect them from the effects of heat or freeze-drying, and also help maintain the shelf life of the vaccine”. Following a wave of backlash from fans who threatened to boycott her make-up range, Kat Von D later issued a statement on Instagram in which she said, “While we believe medications, including vaccines, are not all bad — we also can’t dismiss the fact that some may not be good for everyone. There are plenty of studies that show some vaccinations can work wonders. And there are also studies that show some people [including mothers, and babies] may be more susceptible to vaccine injuries more than others.”

She added that she and her husband were “NOT anti-vaxxers” and said, “Our personal medical records are no one’s business, and why we would feel it important for us to explore all our options when it comes to vaccinating our child, is also no one’s business.”

She also later released a video in which she said she had since “decided to consult with our paediatrician and just let him educate us and guide us” - however she did not reveal if they had decided to vaccinate their child or not.

Donald Trump

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Before his 2016 election campaign, Trump took to Twitter in 2014 and wrote, “If I were President I would push for proper vaccinations but would not allow one time massive shots that a small child cannot take - AUTISM.”

He also claimed that there were “many such cases” and tweeted, “Healthy young child goes to doctor, gets pumped with massive shot of many vaccines, doesn’t feel good and changes - AUTISM.”

Another tweet months later read, “I am being proven right about massive vaccinations - the doctors lied. Save our children & their future.”

Trump would later go on to run for president and during an election debate, he said, “I am totally in favour of vaccines, but I want smaller doses over a longer period of time. Because you take a baby - and I’ve seen it - and I had my children taken care of over a long period of time, over a two or three year period of time, same exact amount, but you take this little beautiful baby and you pump, [the needle] looks just like it’s meant for a horse not for a child."

He claimed that a two and a half year old "beautiful child" came down with a "tremendous" fever a week after being vaccinated, "got very, very sick and now is autistic". He was joined in the debate by doctor Ben Carson, who said he was "an okay doctor".

Since becoming president, Trump appears to have changed his mind on vaccinations - at least where MMR shots are concerned. Speaking to reporters at the White House in April this year, he told them, “They have to get the shots. The vaccinations are so important. This is really going around now. They have to get their shots.”

Robert De Niro

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De Niro is another celebrity who has questioned vaccination and implied that it could have links to autism, going as far as to offer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. $100,000 to anybody who could prove vaccines were safe.

De Niro, whose son has autism, joined Kennedy Jr. at a panel where they criticised the use of a mercury-based ingredient called thimerosal.

Previous studies have ruled out its link to autism and the NHS explains that according to research there is “no increased risk of developing autism or autism spectrum disorder after MMR, mercury or thimerosal exposure”.

He was also criticised when the Tribeca Film Festival, which he co-founded after 9/11, announced it would be screening an anti-vaccination documentary called Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Conspiracy. The film was directed by Andrew Wakefield, who in 1998 explicitly linked the MMR vaccine to autism. (His research was later retracted in 2010 and his medical license was revoked the same year.)

Although the film festival later pulled the film, De Niro defended its stance and said on the Today Show, “I think the movie is something that people should see... definitely, there’s something to that movie.”

He also added, “There’s a lot of information about things that are happening with the CDC, the pharmaceutical companies, there’s a lot of things that are not said. I, as a parent of a child who has autism, I’m concerned and I wanna know the truth. And I’m not anti vaccine, I want safe vaccines. Some people can get a certain type of shot and they can die from it.”

He also told The Today Show journalists that they should “be the ones doing the investigating” and challenged medical researchers to provide proof vaccines were safe, saying, “If you’re scientists, let’s see, let’s hear.”

Charlie Sheen

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According to TMZ, Charlie Sheen was once so furious that the pediatrician of his two children had immunized them he reportedly sent a letter “demanding that he no longer treat the kids."

However, Dr. Peter Waldstein is said to have fired back that he would “treat them if they needed medical attention” and slapped Sheen with an outstanding bill for $380.

Sheen reportedly sent him a box filled entirely with nickels as payment. The Hollywood Reporter also claimed that Sheen previously attended a fundraiser held in honour of known antivaxxer Jenny McCarthy’s autism charity Generation Rescue.

Kirstie Alley

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As with Biel, Alley took issue with another piece of vaccine-related legislation: SB 277.

The law states that children must be “fully immunized against various diseases, including measles, mumps, and pertussis” otherwise they will not be admitted as a student to any school, educational centre or daycare, unless they have a medical exemption or because of personal beliefs if they’ve had their exemption approved by the government

Alley said vaccines were “NOT all HARMLESS” and tweeted, “NO on SB277...no no no...protect your rights to CHOOSE the vaccines your kids and YOU have...they are NOT all HARMLESS...Ur kids,Ur choice.”

She continued, “HOT TOPIC..ouch ouch...through the fire @JerryBrownGov ...veto SB2777...ouch ouch ouch.”

Cindy Crawford

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Crawford tweeted De Niro about an anti-vaccination documentary called Trace Amounts - a film which De Niro has previously recommended in an interview with the Today Show.

She tweeted, “Must see film! Do you want to be a part of the solution?

Selma Blair

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As with Alley, Selma Blair felt uncomfortable with SB277. She revealed on Twitter that she had sent a postcard to Governor Brown in 2015 calling for him to veto the bill, saying that the “current system is working”.

She said, "Parental choice is our right. Most vaccinate. Let us choose.”

Kristin Cavallari

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While speaking with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live!, Cavallari was asked to elaborate on her stance on vaccines. She told him, “You know, at the end of the day, I’m just a mom.”

"There are very scary statistics out there regarding what is in vaccines and what they cause,” she continued, “asthma, allergies, ear infections, all kinds of things. We feel like we are making the best decision for our kids."There is a pediatric group called Homestead, or Home First? Pregnancy brain, I've got it confused. They've never vaccinated any of their children and they haven't had one case of autism. And now, one in 88 boys is autistic, which is a really scary statistic. ... The vaccinations have changed over the years, there's more mercury."

She also revealed that she had not vaccinated her son Camden and a then-pregnant Cavallari also declared that she would not vaccinate her future child.

Bill Maher

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Talk show host Bill Maher's 2009 stance on swine flu vaccines drew controversy. On his show Real Time with Bill Maher, he said, “Why would you let them be the ones to stick a disease into your arm? I would never get a swine flu vaccine or any vaccine. I don’t trust the government, especially with my health."

He has also previously tweeted out, “if u get a swine flu shot ur an idiot”.

Rob Schneider

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The Hot Chick actor is so fervent in his anti-vaccination views that State Farm actually dropped him from their 2014 campaign and pulled their ads starring him after backlash against his views.

Schneider’s history with anti-vaxxing goes back years and in 2012, he ended up lobbying against a bill called AB 2109. The bill required “parents to meet with a doctor before exempting their child from state vaccine requirements” according to the LA Times.

A video of Schneider has also surfaced in which he questioned the “efficacy” of vaccines and said, “The efficacy of these shots have not been proven. And the toxicity of these things—we’re having more and more side effects. We’re having more and more autism. You can’t make people do procedures that they don’t want. It can’t be the government saying that. It’s against the Nuremberg Laws.”

He also added, “You can’t let the state make the decisions...The doctors are not going tot tell you both sides of the issue. They’re not. They are told by the pharmaceutical industries which make billions of dollars that it’s completely safe.”