Health

Eugene

(61,949 posts) Tue Mar 5, 2019, 09:27 AM Mar 2019

Revealed: AmazonSmile helps fund anti-vaccine groups

Source: The Guardian

Revealed: AmazonSmile helps fund anti-vaccine groups

Amazon’s charity arm allows shoppers to donate to an organization of their choosing – including anti-vaccine groups

Julia Carrie Wong
Tue 5 Mar 2019 11.00 GMT

Amazon appears to be helping fund anti-vaccine not-for-profit organizations through its charity arm, the AmazonSmile Foundation, the Guardian can reveal.

The AmazonSmile fundraising program – through which Amazon donates 0.5% of the purchase price of a shopper’s Amazon transactions to an organization of their choice – is promoted on the websites of four prominent anti-vaccine organizations: National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC), Physicians for Informed Consent, Learn the Risk, and Age of Autism.

Numerous other anti-vaccine organizations, including American Citizens for Health Choice (ACHC), National Health Freedom Coalition, Michigan for Vaccine Choice, Texans for Vaccine Freedom, A Voice for Choice and the Informed Consent Action Network are also listed by Amazon as eligible for the donations.

Amazon’s donations are just the latest example of how US tech companies have – wittingly or not – helped to promote and finance the anti-vaccine movement.

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5 replies

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Revealed: AmazonSmile helps fund anti-vaccine groups (Original Post) Eugene Mar 2019 OP

ONLY if you CHOOSE that source for your donations! They should remove it, but don't be confused! hlthe2b Mar 2019 #1

Agreed Sherman A1 Mar 2019 #2

They also have St. Judes and other very good charities. Thanks for perspective still_one Mar 2019 #3

St Judes may do good, but I quit donating to them a few years back when it was bought by Bayer. I in2herbs Mar 2019 #4

Wait a minute. Are you thinking about St. Jude Medical, which makes medical devices which was still_one Mar 2019 #5

hlthe2b

(102,376 posts)

1. ONLY if you CHOOSE that source for your donations! They should remove it, but don't be confused!

Reply to Eugene (Original post)

Tue Mar 5, 2019, 09:30 AM

Mar 2019

I chose ASPCA for my donations and there are plenty of other good recipients. Please choose wisely, but don't take this article to wrongly assume that you should not use SMILE when you log onto Amazon. Plenty of very reputable charities await your donations through this mechanism.

Sherman A1

(38,958 posts)

2. Agreed

Reply to hlthe2b (Reply #1)

Tue Mar 5, 2019, 09:39 AM

Mar 2019

It should also be pointed out that these are not huge contributions and of course the issues with Amazon are an entirely different conversation.

still_one

(92,409 posts)

3. They also have St. Judes and other very good charities. Thanks for perspective

Reply to hlthe2b (Reply #1)

Tue Mar 5, 2019, 09:43 AM

Mar 2019

The Guardian does not always convey the complete facts

in2herbs

(2,947 posts)

4. St Judes may do good, but I quit donating to them a few years back when it was bought by Bayer. I

Reply to still_one (Reply #3)

Tue Mar 5, 2019, 10:11 AM

Mar 2019

figured the pharmaceutical company had enough money to fund the hospital, they don't need mine. I give to others.

still_one

(92,409 posts)

5. Wait a minute. Are you thinking about St. Jude Medical, which makes medical devices which was

Reply to in2herbs (Reply #4)

Tue Mar 5, 2019, 10:52 AM

Mar 2019

bought by ABT, or are your referring to St. Judes Reseach Hospital, started by Danny Thomas, and is a non-profit Hospital

One is a corporation, the other is a reseach hospital fir children. They are not the same.

I am not sure that is accurate. Do you have a link for that?

https://abbott.mediaroom.com/2017-01-04-Abbott-Completes-the-Acquisition-of-St-Jude-Medical

By the way, I not pushing one charity over the other, just including St. Judes Research Hospital as a legitimate charity

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