Wes Streeting's move against autism - NAS - time to step up

The first stage to persecuting a section of a population is to other them. Start having misleading headlines that connect words that are slightly out of context. And it isn't good, the way is has been put is purposeful.

A review is being launched > there must be suspicion to justify a review > some people must be doing something wrong that needs to be checked > they must be bad people if something is wrong >they should be punished in some way.

As pointed out, the figures used are for general mental health, but depression is too big a group, so lets focus the headline on a subset -ASD/ADHD. It is a big enough minority to look for big savings. (savings that could be made by creating more screening in the NHS, instead of farming it out to private companies to charge more.)

The idea that you should welcome checks if you have nothing to hide, is a line I've heard oh so many many time before in persecuting groups.  

To understand the rise in numbers diagnosed you need to look at the history of the DSM. To quote from neurodivergentinsights website on an article called 'rise-in-autism-diagnoses':

• 1994: The DSM-IV expanded the criteria to include Asperger’s Syndrome and PDD-NOS, allowing more individuals — especially those without intellectual disabilities — to be recognized.
  
  
• 2013: The DSM-5 unified these subtypes under a single umbrella: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This marked a shift toward a spectrum model, acknowledging the wide range of experiences and support needs. In the process, previous categories like Asperger’s and PDD-NOS were removed — leading to mixed responses from those who identified with those terms.
  
  
• A quiet but significant update: the DSM-5 also allowed clinicians to diagnose autism and ADHD together. Before 2013, they were told to pick one — meaning many of us (especially those with more internalized traits) were diagnosed with ADHD while our autistic traits went unnoticed.
  
  

So a lot of us weren't missed in childhood, there was no diagnosis. So it makes sense there are generations that need to catch up with what they have. That with the grouping of different conditions under the one ASD banner, then obviously numbers would go up too, as you'll find the headline compare only numbers of those with autism across time-spans, not on the fact that if you start calling apples, pears and bananas fruit, you will have more fruit.

I can't find it now, but until one of those DSMs, you could only be autistic if you were under 3 when diagnosed? So it was easy to be too old even at 4.

So yes, there is a rise in numbers. It would be weird if there wasn't. 

And also it's worth noting, Trump declared it was a problem, so perhaps maybe Starmer is bending over backwards to 'sort the problem' out also, to curry favour? Cynical but you have to be these days.

The first stage to persecuting a section of a population is to other them. Start having misleading headlines that connect words that are slightly out of context. And it isn't good, the way is has been put is purposeful.

A review is being launched > there must be suspicion to justify a review > some people must be doing something wrong that needs to be checked > they must be bad people if something is wrong >they should be punished in some way.

As pointed out, the figures used are for general mental health, but depression is too big a group, so lets focus the headline on a subset -ASD/ADHD. It is a big enough minority to look for big savings. (savings that could be made by creating more screening in the NHS, instead of farming it out to private companies to charge more.)

The idea that you should welcome checks if you have nothing to hide, is a line I've heard oh so many many time before in persecuting groups.  

To understand the rise in numbers diagnosed you need to look at the history of the DSM. To quote from neurodivergentinsights website on an article called 'rise-in-autism-diagnoses':

• 1994: The DSM-IV expanded the criteria to include Asperger’s Syndrome and PDD-NOS, allowing more individuals — especially those without intellectual disabilities — to be recognized.
  
  
• 2013: The DSM-5 unified these subtypes under a single umbrella: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This marked a shift toward a spectrum model, acknowledging the wide range of experiences and support needs. In the process, previous categories like Asperger’s and PDD-NOS were removed — leading to mixed responses from those who identified with those terms.
  
  
• A quiet but significant update: the DSM-5 also allowed clinicians to diagnose autism and ADHD together. Before 2013, they were told to pick one — meaning many of us (especially those with more internalized traits) were diagnosed with ADHD while our autistic traits went unnoticed.
  
  

So a lot of us weren't missed in childhood, there was no diagnosis. So it makes sense there are generations that need to catch up with what they have. That with the grouping of different conditions under the one ASD banner, then obviously numbers would go up too, as you'll find the headline compare only numbers of those with autism across time-spans, not on the fact that if you start calling apples, pears and bananas fruit, you will have more fruit.

I can't find it now, but until one of those DSMs, you could only be autistic if you were under 3 when diagnosed? So it was easy to be too old even at 4.

So yes, there is a rise in numbers. It would be weird if there wasn't. 

And also it's worth noting, Trump declared it was a problem, so perhaps maybe Starmer is bending over backwards to 'sort the problem' out also, to curry favour? Cynical but you have to be these days.