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Blake, Wm. For Children- The Gates of Paradise. 1793.

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A new study analyzes the significant increase in U.S. autism cases, which the study authors describe as an “autism tsunami.”

According to the CDC, one out of every 36 children now has autism, a surge from one out of 110 children in 2006. This new study found that the societal costs of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) could rise to $589 billion annually by 2030, $1.36 trillion per year by 2040, and $5.54 trillion by 2060 without preventative measures.

The authors concluded that rising autism rates must be taken seriously as a public health and economic policy issue. “Paradoxically, the future costs of autism loom so large that, rather than responding with a sense of urgency as one might expect, policymakers thus far have generally failed to engage with the policy implications at all,” they wrote.

Notably, the researchers didn’t investigate why the U.S. autism rate is increasing. The CDC says the surge is due to a greater awareness of ASD and better testing, while others, such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., claim some vaccines cause autism.