So where are the one in 45 adults with autism?
2020 CDC study said 5.4 million U.S. adults have autism
There was a recent news report from Mississippi that shows exactly how marginalized children with autism have become. It was about equity and diversity in autism research, but the underlying message was all about normalizing autism as a fact of life.
The opening sentence from one of the news anchors was stunning.
June 13, 2024, WDAM7 Moselle, MS: Autism study to broaden research base
Anchor:
The CDC estimates one in 36 children and one in 45 adults have been diagnosed with autism.
In other words, there is no autism epidemic. There are lots of autistic adults out there.
The one in 45 claim came from a CDC study published in 2020 showing one in every 45 adults in the U.S. is on the spectrum.
Here’s how CNN reported on it.
CNN 2020: First US study of autism in adults estimates 2.2% have autism spectrum disorder
The first US study of autism in adults estimates that 2.2% of Americans adults have an autism spectrum condition.
That adds up to 5.4 million people age 18 and older, or about 1 in 45 people, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. . . .
“This information is important because ASD is a lifelong condition, and many adults with ASD need ongoing services and supports.”
“To date, an empirical study of adult ASD prevalence in the U.S. has not been accomplished, perhaps because any single approach to ascertain adult ASD has challenges,” the CDC’s Patricia Dietz and colleagues wrote in their report, published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.
“There are no psychometrically validated tests of ASD for adults, which leads to uncertainty for studies using tests designed for children, such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule. In addition, mixed methods are likely needed in order to reach populations living independently and in group settings.”
The CDC does regular surveys of autism in children, based on medical reports, information from parents, and schools. The most recent, in 2016, found that 1.85% of 8-year-olds were identified as having autism. That’s 1 in 54 8-year-olds.
So CNN was telling us, back in 2020, that they were actually finding MORE autism among adults, since the rate for adults was one in 45 while only one in 54 children had autism.
Of course this study quickly disappeared from the news. The CDC couldn’t possibly relate the adult study to the autism we see in our children.
IF THIS WERE LEGITIMATE RESEARCH, the CDC would have shown us the 40, 60 and 80 year olds who are nonverbal, still in diapers, hand flapping and wearing helmets to protect them from injury.
Pretending that independent, high functioning, self-identified adults with autism is proof that there’s nothing new here is more of the phony “science” the CDC is well-known for when it comes to autism.
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THe law called the Data Quality Act, which no one uses, allows citizens to sue the government - which normally is impossible. 1) DQA requires only the best evidence or science be presented to the public either verbally or in writing; 2) if one finds there is a DQA violation (take you pick there are thousands every day) you send a DQA complaint (must be so labeled) to the offending person or agency; 3) you have to spell out everything including how you want them to remedy their mistake; 4 they have a finite time to respond but if they don't or respond with BS; the DQA allows; 4) you to ask the DOJ to enforce the DQA, but of course they will do no such thing - that is when; 5) you can legally file in Federal court against the government for violating the DQA.