RFK Jr.'s quest for the cause of autism ignores what children truly need

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently promised to find the cause of autism in five short months. When asked about the reason for this focus, he commented that “President Trump wants dramatic change in the next two years, and we are going to deliver that for him.”

Secretary Kennedy does not want slow research, he wants to act. But there is plenty of existing rigorous research that is worth actioning. Rather than wasting time and resources examining the private health records of Americans in hopes of findings a cause and cure for autism, we should be focusing on using the scientific evidence we already have to improve the lives of autistic individuals and their families.

As an autism researcher, I know autism can be reliably identified as early as 18 months old, which can unlock a whole world of services and support from therapists, doctors and teachers. Yet currently, the average age of diagnosis remains stagnant at over four years old.

This is particularly problematic because by the age of three, a child's brain has grown to 80% of its adult size. Before that, it’s more moldable, making it easier for the child to rewire, adapt and learn. In autistic children, this early-intervention period is crucial because it could make a difference in whether they ever learn to talk, write or dress themselves, or regulate their emotions and hyper-sensitivities to noise, light and textures.

Many parents see the signs before age three, but they typically face a one-year-long bureaucratic and resource-strapped process of obtaining a formal diagnosis.

Reducing the time it takes for parents to receive a diagnosis and start interventions requires dramatic changes to our current approaches to diagnosing autism.

And right now, advancements in a timely and accurate autism diagnosis are under threat. Recent reductions at the Department of Education, which supports the Institute of Education Sciences, could be a dramatic blow to research initiatives like my “Reduce the Wait,” study of more than 600 toddlers, which aims to improve autism diagnosis timelines. Without this crucial funding, we risk losing momentum in our efforts to improve autism diagnosis and intervention strategies.

My niece, Savannah, is one of the children who waited too long for her autism diagnosis. Her mother first suspected she was autistic when she was two years old. I initially dismissed the idea because Savannah was social and engaging. However, my sister persisted, knowing her daughter was struggling in ways that were not being recognized. It wasn’t until Savannah was seven that she finally received an autism diagnosis — five years later than is now possible.

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It shouldn’t take a year — or longer — for a concerned parent to get answers. The consequences of these delays are profound: children miss out on critical early interventions; families face unnecessary stress, and our society loses the opportunity to fully support neurodiverse individuals from the start.

One fundamental problem with our current diagnostic approach is that the tools we use were primarily developed based on research conducted on white male children. This narrow focus has led to significant disparities in diagnosing girls, children of color and those from low-income backgrounds. To address this, in our “Reduce the Wait” study we are developing individualized scoring algorithms that account for factors like biological sex to ensure more accurate assessments.

This research project is also pushing for an expansion of who is allowed to diagnose autism.

In most states, currently, only physicians and clinical psychologists can formally diagnose autism. Pediatricians, already overwhelmed with responsibilities during 15-minute well-child visits, lack the time for comprehensive autism evaluations. Additionally, with only 4,400 clinical psychologists in the U.S., they are in short supply. One promising solution is to authorize the more widely available Speech-Language Pathologists — who number 180,800 in the U.S. — to conduct autism evaluations. As communication specialists, SLPs are trained to differentiate between speech/language delays and autism-related communication differences.

Our research has demonstrated that SLPs can diagnose autism as accurately as clinical psychologists and physicians. If we change outdated policies to allow SLPs to diagnose autism, we could dramatically increase access to evaluations and reduce wait times. This simple policy shift could ensure that more children receive the support they need during the most critical years of brain development.

As we observe Autism Acceptance Month, now is not the time to cut funding for vital research projects like mine and countless others that have measurable impacts on families. In addition, we must push for policy changes that prioritize early diagnosis. We must expand the pool of qualified professionals who can diagnose autism. Every child deserves timely access to the support they need to thrive. We do need dramatic change.