IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Autism prevalence has taken another major jump in the wrong direction. A once rare disability in 1970 at 1 to 2 in every 10,000 U.S. children has jumped again to 1 in 59 U.S. children. That is a 15% increase since the last 2016 Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network (ADDM) report was released.

“Since TACA started, over 17 years ago, there have been 8 new autism prevalence numbers announced by the CDC. With each increase, I think THIS number will activate more to care,” said Lisa Ackerman, TACA Executive Director. “This prevalence rate means even more parents are being told their child has autism. The diagnosis of one child significantly affects the parents and siblings too. We need to care. We need to act. When a family receives an autism diagnosis, there is a huge learning curve. Therapies, medical intervention, diet, educational services and emotional support are matters most families know little about when a child is diagnosed. Our goal is to speed up the cycle time from diagnosis to effective treatments to independence and/or recovery. A prevalence rate of 1 in 59 cannot be ignored. Families are counting on us to act and support as we can no longer ignore this epidemic,” added Ackerman.

Autism is so prevalent today that if it is not in your direct family, almost every U.S. citizen can say they know someone with autism or a family who is affected.

Talk About Curing Autism (TACA) is a national non-profit organization dedicated to educating and supporting families affected by autism. With 1 in 59 children in the United States diagnosed with autism, support for families is needed more than ever before.

Find all the ways to join TACA in taking action during April Autism Action Month & beyond to help families https://tacanow.org/autism-tough-together/.

About TACA

Talk About Curing Autism is a national non-profit organization dedicated to educating, empowering and supporting families affected by autism. TACA’s aim is to shorten the cycle from the suspicion of autism, to diagnosis, to effective treatments, thereby creating the best future possible for individuals living with autism. The organization currently serves over 55,000 with an average of 500 new families joining TACA each month looking for support and best practices in autism.

Please visit: https://www.tacanow.org for more information.