CDC Surveys Confirm That Autism Is a ‘Major Public-Health Concern’

About 300,000 school-age children in the United States have been diagnosed with autism, according to two comprehensive federal surveys of parents.

The surveys, conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are described as their first national estimates of the prevalence of autism, a neurological disorder characterized by social impairments and repetitive behaviors.

One survey was conducted by phone polling and the other by door-to-door visits, but their results were similar to each other’s and to more localized...