Last week was one long example of why Autism Acceptance Month is so important. There has been lots of news about Robert F Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr. for short). RFK Jr. is the head of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). HHS in the part of government in charge of autism services and research. RFK Jr. spent last week saying harmful and untrue things about autistic people. This plain language roundup will go through the things he said. Then, we will share what ASAN is doing to fight back against the things RFK Jr. said. We’ll also share some actions you can take this week.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) put out a report last week. The report is called the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network report. The report explained that more autistic people have gotten diagnosed recently than they were in the past. This is normal. The CDC puts out the ADDM report every few years. For many years now, the ADDM has said the number of autistic people getting diagnosed is getting higher.

ASAN puts out a statement about this every time a new ADDM report gets put out. We put out a statement this time as well. We know that more people getting diagnosed is part of a normal pattern. This pattern has been the same for a long time.

RFK Jr. was very upset by the ADDM report. He thinks that more people getting diagnosed with autism is a new thing. He thinks it is a bad thing that more people are getting diagnosed.

RFK kept lying about autism. He acted like autism was a disease that could be stopped. He ignored the fact that more people than ever before see doctors who know about autism. That’s the biggest reason why more people are getting diagnosed with autism. But RFK Jr. said there must be some other reason more people are getting diagnosed with autism. This is not true. 

Many more people have health insurance than they did years ago. This happened for many different reasons. Two big reasons are the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid Expansion. Both of these policies helped more Americans get insurance. Having insurance means people are more likely to be able to get a diagnosis. 

In the past, people of color got diagnosed with autism less than white people. But this is starting to change. Now, kids of color from certain age groups get diagnosed more than white kids that age. But RFK Jr. thought it was a bad thing that more kids of color are getting diagnosed. 

Through history, people of color had trouble getting an autism diagnosis. They might not have been able to get health care. Also, the tools doctors use to diagnose autism were only tested on white people. So it is a good thing that more people of color are getting diagnosed now.

RFK Jr is ignoring the science on autism. Doctors, scientists, and policy-makers have worked for years to help children with disabilities. They make sure children get tested for autism, so kids can get help earlier. Getting diagnosed helps autistic people survive. Diagnosis means people can apply for home and community based services (HCBS). Diagnosis also lets people ask for accommodations at work or school.

RFK Jr. works for a government that makes choices that hurt autistic people. The government is trying to cut Medicaid and get rid of the Department of Education. Medicaid is what makes home and community based services possible for most people. The Department of Education is what makes sure accommodations are followed in school. They are supposed towho steps in if someone reports discrimination against disabled students. 

RFK Jr. also fired many people who worked at HHS. Now, he is also trying Then, he tried to change the structure of HHS to cut many important projects. This would make it so important health programs get shut down. The work to help more people get an autism diagnosis would get shut down. If less people get diagnosed because of this, it is not because fewer autistic people exist. It is because the government took away the money to help make better diagnosis tools. Fewer autistic people exist on paper when you take away the tools that let us be seen.

RFK pretends he cares about autistic people, but he is hurting us. He says hurtful things about autistic people. He, and other people in government, are trying to cut programs that help us live in our communities. People need to know that RFK Jr. is wrong. That’s why ASAN, many other autistic people, and other disability organizations are speaking out. We are fighting against the government’s plans for harmful cuts. 

Here are some actions you can take this week: