Vaccination News Home Page subscribe Vaccination NewsLetter
? Autism Increases In The United States, 1992-93 to 2001-02
? The following is taken from the official State statistics produced by the Department of Education in the United States, for numbers of children aged 6-21 served by IDEA (Individuals With Disabilities Discrimination Act) who have autism. It compares the increase over the nine years between 1992-93 and 2001-02:
|
State |
1992-1993 |
2001-2002 |
Percentage Increase |
|
Alabama |
68 |
904 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Alaska |
8 |
223 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Arizona |
199 |
1,348 |
577% |
|
Arkansas |
30 |
774 |
(almost infinite) |
|
California |
1,605 |
13,257 |
726% |
|
Colorado |
14 |
538 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Connecticut |
164 |
1,470 |
796% |
|
Delaware |
15 |
294 |
(almost infinite) |
|
District of Columbia |
0 |
144 |
(infinite) |
|
Florida |
582 |
4,328 |
644% |
|
Georgia |
262 |
2,462 |
840% |
|
Hawaii |
52 |
380 |
631% |
|
Idaho |
39 |
356 |
813% |
|
Illinois |
5 |
3,802 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Indiana |
273 |
3,262 |
1,095% |
|
Iowa |
67 |
554 |
727% |
|
Kansas |
74 |
743 |
904% |
|
Kentucky |
38 |
1,022 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Louisiana |
409 |
1,297 |
217 |
|
Maine |
37 |
552 |
1,392 |
|
Maryland |
28 |
2,396 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Massachusetts |
493 |
2,681 |
444% |
|
Michigan |
288 |
4,719 |
1,539% |
|
Minnesota |
296 |
3,270 |
1,005% |
|
Mississippi |
0 |
461 |
(infinite) |
|
Missouri |
336 |
1,953 |
481% |
|
Montana |
20 |
197 |
885% |
|
Nebraska |
4 |
415 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Nevada |
5 |
518 |
(almost infinite) |
|
New Hampshire |
0 |
404 |
(infinite) |
|
New Jersey |
446 |
3,526 |
691% |
|
New Mexico |
16 |
265 |
(almost infinite) |
|
New York |
1,648 |
7,023 |
326% |
|
North Carolina |
786 |
3,095 |
294% |
|
North Dakota |
9 |
144 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Ohio |
22 |
3,057 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Oklahoma |
31 |
785 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Oregon |
37 |
2,847 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Pennsylvania |
346 |
3,969 |
1,047% |
|
Puerto Rico |
266 |
518 |
95% |
|
Rhode Island |
19 |
384 |
(almost infinite) |
|
South Carolina |
141 |
1,012 |
618% |
|
South Dakota |
36 |
250 |
594% |
|
Tennessee |
304 |
1,103 |
263% |
|
Texas |
1,444 |
7,099 |
392% |
|
Utah |
105 |
723 |
589% |
|
Vermont |
6 |
248 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Virginia |
539 |
2,365 |
339% |
|
Washington |
476 |
1,972 |
314% |
|
West Virginia |
101 |
374 |
270% |
|
Wisconsin |
18 |
2,247 |
(almost infinite) |
|
Wyoming |
15 |
117 |
680% |
|
Total |
12,222 |
97,847 |
+701% overall |
(Source: Individuals With Disabilities Education Act data, US Department of Education. Note: Where increases are from a very low base figure, these have been expressed as “almost infinite”.)
? For every US case in the IDEA database there was in 1993, there are now eight.
? The detailed 2002 MIND study by Byrd et al proved that the California increases were not ascribable to either better recognition or greater awareness, nor to in-migration. This could be reasonably expected to be the case in other States, too.
? It seems obvious that the US has an autism epidemic. The UK has a very similar health regime to the US, so it also seems reasonable to conclude that the UK probably has an autism epidemic, too, but just hasn’t yet realised it. The Department of Education in London has even argued strongly against collecting data on children with autism.
? There is now a growing acceptance in the US that the IDEA figures should be a source of deep concern, marking a dramatic increase in a very short period.
ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND
MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION
PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS
OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR
LEGAL ADVICE. THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND
COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH
YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.