WASHINGTON — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Thursday its intent to fund among the first Trump administration-solicited research on a debunked link between vaccines and autism.

The contract — which supports research to “investigate the association between vaccination and autism prevalence” — will be awarded to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, should the contract be finalized.

The contract is sole-source, meaning institutions did not formally compete for the funding, usually because one institution is believed to be the only place the research can be completed. Still, the government could fund other kinds of research around similar questions.

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