US Health Chief RFK Jr. calls autism ‘preventable’, drawing criticism from researchers

The CDC says 1 in 31 children in the US now diagnosed with autism

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US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has drawn sharp criticism from leading autism researchers after calling autism a “preventable” condition and attributing its rising prevalence to environmental factors.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Kennedy rejected the idea that improved screening or genetics account for the increase in autism diagnoses, contradicting both the CDC and experts within his own department.

“Genes don’t cause epidemics,” he said. “You need an environmental toxin.”

The remarks followed a new CDC report showing that 1 in 31 American eight-year-olds has been diagnosed with autism, up from 1 in 36 in 2020.

Researchers largely credit expanded screening, broader diagnostic criteria, and increased awareness for the upward trend.

Autism is not a disease but a neurodevelopmental condition influenced by multiple factors, including genetics. Scientists have long warned against oversimplifying its causes.

“There is a clear genetic contribution. That is not in question,” said Dr. Catherine Lord, a psychologist and autism researcher at UCLA.

Kennedy said his department would prioritise studies into toxins introduced around 1989, a year he claims marks the beginning of the autism “epidemic.” He pledged to deliver preliminary answers by September and invite the research community to join the effort.

But experts expressed concern that Kennedy’s approach could misdirect public funds and stigmatise affected families. “We are being set up to look in the wrong place,” said Dr. David Mandell, a psychiatry professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

While Kennedy did not mention vaccines, he has previously promoted a debunked link between childhood vaccinations and autism. Dozens of studies have found no such connection.

Autism researchers cautioned that Kennedy’s focus on toxins and dismissal of genetic science could undermine more productive avenues of research and delay support services for children already diagnosed.