Information about autism statistics

Information about autism statistics

This growing awareness of the disorder has led to an increase in information and support available to parents. What are the latest autism statistics?

Who is affected?

Talk About Curing Autism (TACA) summarized the latest statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and reported that approximately 1 million people in the U.S. have autism. About 1 in 150 children are diagnosed with autism. Since boys are diagnosed more often than girls, this equates to 1 in 94 men.

A new case of autism is diagnosed every 20 minutes. Around 24,000 new cases are diagnosed every year. In the state of California, approximately 7 out of 10 children diagnosed with autism are under the age of 14.

Economic impact and financing

The economic impact of autism is estimated at over $90 billion and is expected to more than double in the next decade. It is the fastest growing developmental disability in America.

How does the diagnosis rate affect financing? In the late 1990s, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) allocated only $5 million for autism research. Today, NIH funding for autism, which affects 1 in 150, is $15 million. For comparison, leukemia, which occurs in 1 in 25,000 children, receives $300 million in research funding. Muscular dystrophy, which affects 1 in 20,000, gets $160 million; Cystic fibrosis, which affects 1 in 5,000, gets $75 million; and juvenile diabetes, which affects 1 in 500, will receive $140 million.

Increase diagnoses

According to David Kirby, author of Evidence of Harm, 1 to 2 in 10,000 children in the United States were diagnosed with autism in the 1980s. This number increased to 20 per 10,000 in the late 1990s. In 2000 the number rose to 40 per 10,000 and again in 2004 to 60 per 10,000.

The cause of the increase is a matter of debate

Researchers aren't sure whether this increase is due to an actual increase in cases or better diagnosis. One argument against the increasing accuracy of diagnosis is that diagnosis rates for Down syndrome, cystic fibrosis and intellectual disability have remained the same.

Regardless of the reason for the increase in numbers, cases of autism are increasing in the United States, and funding for research does not appear to have kept pace with this increase. CDC Director Dr. Julie Gerberding notes that ""our estimates are getting better and more consistent, although we can't yet say whether there is a real increase [autism spectrum disorders] or if the changes are the result of our better studies. However, we know that these disorders affect too many children. “

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