Wisconsin researcher responds to White House autism announcement

Maureen Durkin
Maureen Durkin
Maureen Durkin, Professor of Population Health Sciences and Waisman Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities Research Center at UW Madison

The dust has not settled from Monday’s White House press conference where the President and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said there was a link between the use of acetaminophen by pregnant women and autism, without providing any new research or conclusive evidence backing the claim

Since that press conference on Monday afternoon, numerous medical organizations have pushed back, saying acetaminophen is safe for pregnant women to use, and that untreated fevers are dangerous to pregnancies.

The Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin houses research facilities, services, training and support programs for advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases, and conditions like autism.