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Person

Claire Dwoskin

Hometown:

McClean, VA
Nationality:

American
Occupation:

Founder of Children’s Medical Safety Research Institute

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Claire Dwoskin is a left-of-center political activist who also supports organizations focused on promoting debunked studies suggesting that vaccines cause various autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, including autism. Dwoskin jointly founded the Dwoskin Family Foundation, with her then-husband Albert Dwoskin; as of early 2019, the couple was reportedly “estranged.” 1 The foundation primarily funds various advocacy campaigns for left-of-center causes, and anti-vaccine research and advocacy.

Dwoskin was founder and president of the Children’s Medical Safety Research Institute (CMSRI), which was founded to find a causal link between vaccines and autism, Alzheimer’s disease, and various autoimmune aliments. 2 She also serves as an advisory board member of the Rosalind Franklin Society and the National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC). She is also the founder and co-chair of the Vaccine Safety Conference, and formerly served as the finance vice-chair for the Democratic National Committee.

Notable Campaign Contributions

Claire and Albert Dwoskin are major contributors to Democratic politicians and party committees. The Dwoskin family funded the Clinton family, both former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaigns. Bill Clinton spoke at their home in McLean, Virginia on two occasions. 3

In 2013, Claire Dwoskin’s husband Albert Dwoskin donated $10,000 to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and many prominent Democrats, including Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Vice President Al Gore. 4 Claire Dwoskin also made several individual donations to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee totaling $64,600. 5

Anti-Vaccine Advocacy

In 2011, Dwoskin organized the “Vaccine Safety Conference” in Jamaica with 21 presentations on non-research-based criticism of vaccinations, including “Vaccination Programs: Prevention or Corruption?” and with guest speakers who have retracted research that originally contended autism was linked to vaccinations, such as Andrew Wakefield. The conference was funded in part by Paul Soros, brother of George Soros. 6 7

Many scientists who have conducted research funded by Children’s Medical Safety Research Institute have retracted their studies suggesting links between vaccines and autoimmune diseases. As well, many of these scientists are on the editorial boards of the scientific journals publishing their studies. 8

The National Vaccine Information Center promotes alleged risks of vaccinations and funded the short film Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe, which was removed from the Tribeca Film Festival in 2016. 9 Dwoskin’s foundation donated $260,000 to the NVIC and donated $950,000 to the University of British Columbia, which conducted studies claiming to link aluminum in vaccines to neurological disorders. Dwoskin’s foundation also funded the movie The Greater Good which suggests vaccines cause autism. 10

While Dwoskin has claimed not to be “anti-vaccine,”11 she wrote in 2010 to John Stossel’s Fox Business Network program to claim that “vaccines are a holocaust of poison on our children’s brains and immune systems.” 1213 She wrote two articles in January 2016, one recommending the HPV vaccine be pulled from the market, and one suggesting asthma medication may increase the risk for autism during pregnancy. 14 15

Dissolution of CSMRI

In June 2019, reports surfaced that Albert Dwoskin announced he would stop funding the Children’s Medical Safety Research Institute, which was then shut down shortly after Claire and Albert filed divorce proceedings. 16 Albert expressed his regret for involvement with CMSRI and distanced himself from the research promoted by the CMSRI. 17

References

  1. Kucinich, Jackie. “DNC Pockets $50,000 from Anti-Vaxx Activists.” The Daily Beast. June 20, 2019. Accessed August 07, 2019. https://www.thedailybeast.com/measles-outbreak-doesnt-stop-democrats-from-taking-anti-vaxx-donations.
  2. Kucinich, Jackie. “Dem MegaDonor Pulls Funding From Anti-Vax Group, Regrets Involvement.” The Daily Beast. June 20, 2019. Accessed August 07, 2019. https://www.thedailybeast.com/dem-megadonor-pulls-funding-from-anti-vax-group-blames-wife-for-initial-involvement.
  3. Kucinich, Jackie. “These Anti-Vaxxers Are Funding ‘Ready for Hillary’.” The Daily Beast. February 04, 2015. Accessed August 07, 2019. https://www.thedailybeast.com/these-anti-vaxxers-are-funding-ready-for-hillary.
  4. “Donor Lookup.” Open Secrets. 2019. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Claire+Dwoskin&page=1
  5. “Donor Lookup.” Open Secrets. 2019. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?name=Claire+Dwoskin&page=1
  6. Admin. “The 2011 ‘Vaccine Safety Conference’ in Jamaica.” October 6, 2011. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://leftbrainrightbrain.co.uk/2011/10/06/the-2011-vaccine-safety-conference-in-jamaica/
  7. CNN Wire Staff. “Retracted autism study an ‘elaborate fraud,’ British journal finds.” January 5, 2011. Accessed August 1, 2019.  http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/05/retracted-autism-study-an-elaborate-fraud-british-journal-finds/
  8. “What is the Children’s Medical Safety Research Institute?” Vaxopedia. 2017. May 2017. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://vaxopedia.org/2017/05/17/what-is-the-childrens-medical-safety-research-institute/
  9. Goodman, Stephanie. “Robert De Niro Pulls Anti-Vaccine Documentary From Tribeca Film Festival” March 26, 2016. Accessed August 6, 2019.  https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/27/movies/robert-de-niro-pulls-anti-vaccine-documentary-from-tribeca-film-festival.html
  10. Trafecante, Kate. “The money behind the vaccine skeptics.” February 5, 2015. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://money.cnn.com/video/news/2015/02/05/the-money-behind-the-vaccine-medical-myth.cnnmoney/
  11. Kucinich, Jackie. “These Anti-Vaxxers Are Funding ‘Ready for Hillary’.” The Daily Beast. February 04, 2015. Accessed August 07, 2019. https://www.thedailybeast.com/these-anti-vaxxers-are-funding-ready-for-hillary.
  12. Stossel, J. “Holocaust of Poison”? FOX Business. October 30, 2010. Archived from the original June 6, 2011. Accessed March 10, 2019, https://web.archive.org/web/20110606043826/http://www.foxbusiness.com/on-air/stossel/blog/2010/10/30/holocaust-of-poison
  13. Staff. “Hanging with the anti-vaxxers.” The Economist. March 28, 2019. Accessed August 8, 2019. https://www.economist.com/united-states/2019/03/28/hanging-with-the-anti-vaxxers
  14. Dwoskin, Claire. “Could the HPV Vaccine Do More Harm Than Good?” Medium. January 20, 2016. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://medium.com/@ClaireDwoskin/could-the-hpv-vaccine-do-more-harm-than-good-26ba8212161e
  15. “Dwoskin, Claire. “Can Asthma Drugs During Pregnancy Increase Autism Risk?” Medium. January 28, 2016. Accessed August 1, 2019.  https://medium.com/@ClaireDwoskin/can-asthma-drugs-during-pregnancy-increase-autism-risk-541cf8a2bdb6
  16. Kucinich, Jackie. Dem MegaDonor Pulls Funding From Anti-Vax Group, Regrets Involvement.” June 20, 2019. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://www.thedailybeast.com/dem-megadonor-pulls-funding-from-anti-vax-group-blames-wife-for-initial-involvement
  17. Kucinich, Jackie. “DNC Pockets $50,000 from Anti-Vaxx Activists” June 20, 2019. Accessed August 1, 2019. https://www.thedailybeast.com/measles-outbreak-doesnt-stop-democrats-from-taking-anti-vaxx-donations?ref=home
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