NEW YORK (AP) — Federal health officials intend to award a contract to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to investigate whether there is a link between vaccinations and autism, according to a government procurement notice.

The Troy, New York, engineering school is getting the no-bid contract because of its “unique ability” to link data on children and mothers, according to the notice posted this week.

Officials at the Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to questions about the notice, including how much the contract is for or what exactly the researchers intend to do.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a leading voice in the antivaccine movement before President Donald Trump selected him to oversee federal health agencies, announced in April a “massive testing and research effort” to determine the cause of autism by this month. He has repeatedly tried to link vaccines to the condition.

An RPI biotech engineering professor, Juergen Hahn, has used artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to look for patterns in blood samples of children with autism. Hahn “is renowned for the quality and rigor of his research,” RPI officials said in a statement acknowledging the intended grant.

“If this project is awarded, he intends to publish the results of his work at the conclusion of the project,” the statement added.

The Associated Press left messages seeking comment from Hahn.

The notice raises many questions, said Alycia Halladay, who oversees research activities and grants for the Autism Science Foundation.

RPI is not known in the field as having any special access to data on this kind of question and “wouldn’t be the obvious choice,” Halladay said.

It’s also not clear how the contract fits into other autism research that the government may be planning, she said.

But perhaps the biggest question is why money is being spent on such a study at all, she added.

Scientists have ruled out a link between vaccines and autism, finding no evidence of increased rates of autism among those who are vaccinated compared with those who are not.

“The question has been studied for 20 years, multiple times by researchers around the world using millions of people, and there has never been a credible association found between vaccines and autism,” Halladay said.

Those who have spent decades researching autism have found no single cause. Genetics play a role, and other factors include the age of a child’s father, the mother’s weight, and whether she had diabetes or was exposed to certain chemicals.

Whatever amount is being spent on the project could instead be going to “other important research questions,” including studies of genetics and environmental factors, Halladay said.

“I think that’s the most frustrating part,” she said.

For months, HHS officials have been trying to use vaccine safety data compiled by the CDC to look for harms that might be tied to shots. Kennedy has accused CDC leaders of stonewalling those efforts, but the actual obstacle has been something else, said one former federal health official familiar with the situation, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.

About a dozen medical research organizations collect the vaccine safety data and report it to the CDC. Contracts that stretch back nearly two decades give those entities — not the CDC — control over the data, and HHS has not yet been able to get it, the official said.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Lawmakers are on high alert after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirkvoicing concerns about their safety and making calls for increased protection as the political atmosphere in the U.S. grows more tense.

Fears have been aired on both sides of the aisle. Democrats and Republicans, many of whom maintained a close relationship with Kirk, say they’re worried about their own security and that of their families, staffers and colleagues.

Some members of Congress are taking immediate action.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is postponing two upcoming events in North Carolina, according to her office. Democratic Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., canceled events this weekend, though he asked his staff that a church service remain on the schedule. And Reps. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., and Nancy Mace, R-S.C., told BLN they are pausing public events in the near term.

Moskowitz — who was targeted last year by an armed man who has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for illegal firearms offenses — said he is concerned about the safety of the entire House of Representatives.

‘We all go to things like that. We all speak at colleges, we all go to public events, we all do parades. That could’ve been anybody.’

“I’m worried about everybody in that chamber, including myself,” Moskowitz said. “I’m worried about my Republican colleagues that are vocal on TV and social media; I’m worried about my Democratic colleagues who are vocal on TV and social media.”

He called the shooting death of Kirk, video footage of which quickly went viral, “shocking and terrifying and dehumanizing” and said it hits close to home for politicians who routinely make public appearances. “We all go to things like that. We all speak at colleges, we all go to public events, we all do parades. That could’ve been anybody,” he said.

Mace said she has requested police officers be stationed outside her offices, is doubling her security team and now plans to carry a firearm. She said she planned to go to a gun range this weekend.

“I never thought we would get to this place, but here we are. I think an invisible line was crossed,” she said. “I don’t even feel safe walking outside, I don’t feel safe being in my own vehicle, and I certainly don’t feel safe going anywhere without someone with a gun on my side or carrying myself.”

The fears and emotions among members were still raw two days after Kirk, the 31-year-old darling of the right, was fatally shot during an event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, sending shockwaves and sparking fury through conservative circles, Washington and the entire country. Authorities announced Friday morning that Tyler Robinson, 22, had been apprehended in connection with the killing.

The newfound concern comes as threats against lawmakers have already been spiking. The U.S. Capitol Police told BLN on Friday that the agency is “on track to work through roughly 14,000 Threat Assessment Cases by the end of 2025,” a nearly 50% percent increase from the prior year.

Capitol Police investigated 9,474 “concerning statements and direct threats” against members of Congress and their families and staff in 2024, compared to 8,008 incidents in 2023.

The stunning increase in threats against lawmakers is playing out against a heightened political environment nationwide, with attacks against politicians and activists on the rise. President Donald Trump has faced two assassination attempts, including the campaign rally incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a bullet grazed his ear.

And in June, Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman, a Democrat, and her husband, Mark, were fatally shot at their homes. Another Democrat in the state Senate, John Hoffman, and his wife, Yvette, were critically injured after both were shot at their house the same night.

In the wake of Kirk’s assassination, members of Congress in both parties are demanding increased security.

The House Administration Committee in August temporarily increased members’ monthly security allotment from $150 to $5,000 a month to allow them to hire personal protection through the end of the fiscal year, which closes on Sept. 30. The action also gave lawmakers an extra $10,000 to pay for residential security systems.

“I hope the speaker extends that and makes it more permanent, and I think that’s necessary, but I also don’t think that’s sufficient,” Moskowitz said, predicting that every member will soon need one staff member dedicated solely to security.

Mace, a vocal Trump ally, agreed the temporary funding increase is “not nearly enough, particularly for the higher profile members who are outspoken.”

Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Thursday “there’s been a lot of discussion” about how to address security for members of Congress following Kirk’s death, and how to pay for it.

“We’re under a very thorough review of the existing options and how we might need to enhance that to ensure member security and safety,” he said. “It’s a big concern of all of them and their spouses back home and their families and, and everything. So there’s a cost associated with that. I mean, a financial cost that is significant.”

The question of increasing funding for members’ security could come to a head in the coming weeks, as Congress stares down a Sept. 30 deadline to fund the government or risk a shutdown. Several sources said additional funding for protection could be dealt with during the government funding process.

“We’ve gotta protect people who run for public office or no one will,” Johnson said.

Mychael Schnell