Summary

RFK Jr. is using private medical records to create a registry of people with autism in the United States.

The National Institutes of Health is helping to collect private medical records from government and commercial databases, including “prescription records from pharmacies, lab testing, and genomics records from the Department of Veterans Affairs and Indian Health Service, private insurance claims, and data from smartwatches and fitness trackers.”

Kennedy, a longtime critic of vaccination, has made the study of autism one of HHS’s primary goals. He has called autism “preventable” and claimed “he can find a cure for the condition by September.”

  • AbsolutelyNotAVelociraptor@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    17
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    20 hours ago

    Except, you know, autism can’t be cured and, you know, the uptick in cases is not because a raise in the numbers but a better diagnosis.

    If they spent that money and time in improving autistic people life quality instead of “curing” them, the world would be a much better place.

    • WaitThisIsntReddit@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      arrow-down
      12
      ·
      edit-2
      6 hours ago

      Why are you so sure autism can’t be cured? Is “autism” even a narrow enough diagnosis to cure?

      I didn’t vote for trump. I don’t support rounding up autistic people. RFK is a maniac. Can we have civil discussion?

      • AbsolutelyNotAVelociraptor@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        11
        ·
        15 hours ago

        Because we are not ill. We have a differently wired brain. You can’t just rewire my synaptic connections in a neurotypical way. The only way to “cure” autism is by removing autistic people from the world and… I’m not gonna agree with such solution.

        I really hope you are asking this out of innocent ignorance, because the alternative would make you part of the problem and… there are words for you in that case, words that could probably get me banned.

        • SabinStargem@lemmy.today
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          3
          ·
          7 hours ago

          I will speak for you, if you are willing.

          If people try to kill us, we will kill them. We will defend ourselves from genocide.

        • WaitThisIsntReddit@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          6 hours ago

          I am ignorant about autism. I’m pretty sure humanity is ignorant about autism. There are people suffering degraded quality of life attributed to autism, is that not worth treating? Are people like Chrischan not ill or is that not related to autism?

      • Scott_of_the_Arctic@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        7
        ·
        15 hours ago

        Because whatever causes it, it’s a difference in synaptic connectivity that can’t be medicated or trained away. The only effective way to remove autism from society is removing autists from society and that’s exactly what rfk jr wants to do.

      • dickalan@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        16 hours ago

        Are you trying to be a unhelpful walrus or is this just happening organically, can you actually add something of function or substance to the conversation of just being a little detracting asshole?

        • WaitThisIsntReddit@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          6 hours ago

          I’m asking questions. I think just stating autism can’t be “cured” is a wild claim considering we barely understand what it is. Do I need to state my politics before asking questions or do you just immediately think I’m a trump loving maniac that is okay with rounding up all the autistic?