Autism diagnoses are continuing to increase in the United States, according to a new report published Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
An estimated one in 31 8-year-olds was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 2022, according to the report.
To compare, one in 36 was diagnosed with ASD in 2020, the report found.
This is also a rise from the one in 150 children diagnosed with autism in 2000, CDC data shows.
Medical experts have previously told ABC News this increase is largely due to better awareness, better access to screening and services, and diagnosis of the wide range of autism spectrum disorder.
There is a wider recognition and a better understanding of what is now understood as autism/ASD, and the definition of what classifies as autism has broadened, according to experts.
For example, in 2013, doctors decided to fold Asperger’s disease and other similar diagnoses into the autism classification.
The CDC report found ASD was 3.4 times more prevalent among boys at 49.2 children per 1,000 compared to 14.3 children per 1,000.
ASD is a spectrum, which means symptoms vary by person: some need little support in their daily lives, and some may need a great deal of support in performing day-to-day activities.
Some may have advanced conversation skills and others may be nonverbal.
The report does not mean one in 31 children is living with the most severe cases of the disorder.
Among children with ASD, fewer than 40% of children were classified as having an intellectual disability.
Additionally, the report showed racial/ethnic disparities persist.
Prevalence was lower among white children compared to other groups.
ASD rates stood at 27.7 per 1,000 for white children compared to 38.2 per 1,000 for Asian or Pacific Islander children, 37.5 for American Indian/Alaska Native children, 36.6 for Black or African American children, 33.0 for Hispanic children and 31.9 for multiracial children.
The report did have limitations; the data came from 16 research universities and institutions across 14 states and Puerto Rico, which may not be nationally representative.
“Prevalence varied widely across the 16 sites — from 1 in 103 in Texas (Laredo) to 1 in 19 in California — which could reflect differences in availability of services for early detection, evaluation, and diagnostic practices in each community,” said Dr. Karyl Rattay, director of CDC’s division of human development and disability, in a statement.
In a statement, advocacy group Autism Speaks said the report showing increasing rates “reflects, in part, real progress: increased awareness, broader diagnostic criteria, and more consistent, standardized screening tools have all contributed to more children being identified earlier and more accurately — underscored the need for continued support and investment in the autism community.”
The report comes amid a focus on autism from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
During a cabinet meeting at the White House last week, Kennedy said his agency will “know what has caused the autism epidemic” by September and “eliminate those exposures.”
Later, The Washington Post reported that this research will begin in September, not conclude in September.
In a statement on Tuesday, Kennedy said the increased rates in the report are evidence that the autism epidemic is “running rampant.”
“President Trump has tasked me with identifying the root causes of the childhood chronic disease epidemic — including autism,” Kennedy said, in part.
“We are assembling teams of world-class scientists to focus research on the origins of the epidemic, and we expect to begin to have answers by September.”
Some psychiatrists and autism experts have told ABC News it’s important to highlight the rising rates of autism and that at least Kennedy is putting a spotlight on it.
The experts, however, said Kennedy and others are missing important context about why autism rates are increasing.
In addition to the broadening of the definition of ASD, they say reasons for rising rates may include people having children at older ages, better awareness and access to diagnostic testing.
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