In The Politics of Autism, I write about the experiences of different economic, ethnic and racial groups. Inequality is a big part of the story.
Our findings suggest racial/ethical disparities in the temporal trend of ASD prevalence, although these differences were not statistically significant. A higher prevalence of ASD in White individuals was previously reported,1,6 whereas our analysis indicated that the prevalence in non-Hispanic Black individuals has surpassed that of White individuals since 2018, which is consistent with a recent study using data from the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act.3 More important, the increasing prevalence in Black individuals was linked to diagnosis of ASD at a younger age, potentially explained by the improved access to health care in recent years—this is the good news. However, the bad news is that because of the racial/ethnic inequities, many new cases of ASD have not been identified yet.However, the bad news is that because of the racial/ethnic inequities, many new cases of ASD have not been identified yet.
