When Brooke Littlefield of Spokane Valley sought an autism diagnosis for her son Jack last November, she was worried about his communication delays. Jack, who was nearly 4, is an energetic boy who loves cars and can read simple words and write letters, but he struggles to express his basic needs even though he knows the words. Months later, she's questioning that decision. "When we were trying to get him diagnosed, we wanted to get him services he needed," Littlefield said. "But since the election, sometimes I regret getting him diagnosed. Because it could put him on a list somewhere, and it makes me scared."¹

That "list" Littlefield fears may be more valuable than she realizes. It serves as a trove of marketing data for a network of businesses positioned to profit from a systematic overhaul of autism treatment recommendations. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to replace independent medical experts with his own appointees. This could create a pathway for mandating insurance coverage of treatments his inner circle sells.

The USPSTF Takeover

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) represents one of the most powerful yet little-known non-partisan levers in American healthcare. Under the Affordable Care Act, when the USPSTF gives an "A" or "B" grade to any preventive service, private insurers and Medicaid programs must cover it without patient cost-sharing. A positive USPSTF grade can ease costs for families, but in the case of autism it would chiefly serve as a financial windfall for Kennedy's network of friends, ensuring their products are funded by insurance dollars.

According to warnings from the American Medical Association, Kennedy plans to fire all 16 current USPSTF members and replace them with his own appointees.² His overhaul of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices received widespread publicity. The USPSTF takeover has received minimal attention despite its enormous financial implications. Kennedy's appointees could recommend the autism treatments his business network promotes. Insurance companies would then be required to cover them, creating a captive market worth billions of dollars.

According to the Wall Street Journal, an upcoming HHS report will link autism to acetaminophen use during pregnancy and promote folinic acid as a treatment.³ This provides the perfect pretext. Scientists remain skeptical of both claims. A 2024 Swedish study of over 2 million children found no link between prenatal acetaminophen and autism.⁴ Professional medical societies have warned of 'politicization' and 'erosion of scientific integrity' if Kennedy reshapes the USPSTF, potentially allowing his reconstituted panel to grade interventions favorably regardless of scientific merit and create mandatory insurance coverage for treatments his business partners sell.⁵

The Business Network

Kennedy's plan depends on a sophisticated web of cross-investments and personal relationships that blur the lines between government service and private profit. Dr. Mark Hyman sits at its center. Kennedy's longtime friend joined him on white-water rafting trips to Chile and treks to Machu Picchu. Hyman co-founded Function Health, a subscription lab company seeking a $2 billion valuation that sells nutrient panels for $500 annually, including tests for the B vitamins and folate levels that his network promotes as autism interventions.

The Means siblings complete the financial triangle. Calley Means now serves as a White House adviser while remaining co-founder of TrueMed. He operates a supplement financing platform valued at over $40 million. His sister Casey is Trump's nominee for Surgeon General. She co-founded Levels, worth $300 million, which promotes glucose monitoring for healthy individuals at $199 per month. Hyman invested in TrueMed while Casey Means invested in Function Health. This creates a circular flow of capital that benefits whenever government officials promote these platforms.⁶

Kennedy himself has significant financial stakes in the alternative medicine industry. He earned over $20,000 per week from Children's Health Defense, his anti-vaccine organization, and made approximately $100,000 by trademarking the "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) phrase before transferring it to an ally.⁷ Kennedy has promoted vitamins and supplements in dozens of public appearances, positioning himself to benefit from increased demand for alternative treatments. After Kennedy transferred the trademark to his friend, filings by the MAHA LLC managed by Del Bigtree expanded the trademark's scope to cover supplements, vitamins, and essential oils, categories often marketed in connection with autism therapies and wellness regimens.⁸ While there is no evidence that MAHA is currently selling such products, the filings show the brand was positioned for use in the promotion of treatments that overlap with autism-related claims.

The treatments they're positioning align perfectly with the anticipated HHS autism report. Kennedy has long promoted vitamins and folate interventions for autism. Casey Means advocates methylated B vitamins and homocysteine testing as personalized autism solutions. Hyman packages these into tailored supplement regimens marketed as addressing "hidden root causes." Their business model transforms government skepticism of traditional medicine into private profit through unregulated alternatives.

The Marketing Data Goldmine

Kennedy's proposed autism registry would function as a surveillance mechanism, but the real value lies in the marketing intelligence it would generate. The government would collect detailed health and demographic data on families affected by autism. Companies could mine this database to identify prime targets for alternative medicine marketing with surgical precision. Social media advertising relies on guesswork and broad demographics. A government-compiled registry would provide exact targeting based on medical diagnosis, geographic location, and socioeconomic indicators that predict spending power. The American Civil Liberties Union, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, and 80 other organizations have raised concerns about the registry's potential for surveillance and data misuse, with advocates warning that "autistic people's private data not be shared without our consent."⁹

The registry's data would be invaluable for the subscription-based business models Kennedy's network employs. Function Health's annual testing packages, TrueMed's supplement marketplace, and Casey Means' glucose monitoring all depend on identifying health-conscious consumers willing to pay premium prices for ongoing services. An autism registry provides exactly that customer profile while carrying the implicit endorsement of federal health authorities.

This approach mirrors successful pharmaceutical marketing strategies that Kennedy claims to oppose, but with a crucial difference: supplement companies operate under far looser regulatory constraints. Pharmaceutical companies must prove efficacy and safety through rigorous clinical trials. Supplement manufacturers can make health claims with minimal oversight. The same government data that pharmaceutical companies would need extensive permissions to access could flow freely to Kennedy's allies through informal channels.

Local Stakes

The consequences extend far beyond abstract policy debates to kitchen tables across Eastern Washington. Spokane County is home to an estimated 5,500 children with autism, making it a significant market for any mandated treatments.¹⁰ Kennedy's USPSTF appointees could recommend folinic acid supplements or specialized testing. Local families would find these services covered by insurance, but the coverage would flow to companies with financial ties to the decision-makers.

Kennedy says this about children with autism:

This dehumanizing view serves Kennedy's business model perfectly: children dismissed as incapable become lifelong customers. These same families could find themselves funding the supplement empires of officials who view their children as medical problems requiring expensive, ongoing solutions rather than individuals deserving support and accommodation.

Local pediatricians report growing confusion among parents about autism treatments, with some families already turning to unproven supplements marketed through social media. The federal government could begin recommending and mandating coverage for these approaches. The confusion will only multiply while directing healthcare dollars toward Kennedy's business network.

Congressional Silence

Washington's 5th District Representative Michael Baumgartner has not publicly addressed Kennedy's controversial autism strategies and health appointments, despite the significant impacts to his constituents. Even Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, who provided a crucial vote for Kennedy's confirmation, now publicly questions the integrity of Kennedy's health committee appointments.¹² Without local oversight, Kennedy's systematic capture of preventive medicine recommendations proceeds largely unchallenged without Eastern Washington having a voice.

The stakes couldn't be higher. The USPSTF influences coverage decisions affecting millions of Americans, while autism treatments represent a rapidly growing market. Kennedy's network stands to capture both the regulatory apparatus that mandates coverage and the businesses that provide the covered services. This represents a level of vertical integration that would be scandalous in any other industry.

The Coming Decision

Kennedy's reconstituted USPSTF will have the power to mandate coverage for autism treatments his network promotes. The decisions his appointees make will reveal whether American preventive medicine has been captured by the same type of commercial interests Kennedy condemned when they involved mainstream pharmaceutical companies.

For families like the Littlefields, the transformation of autism policy into a business opportunity represents a fundamental betrayal of trust. Instead of accessing proven services, they may have inadvertently enrolled their children in a marketing database designed to sell unproven treatments to desperate families.

Under Kennedy's system, children with autism would generate substantial tax-advantaged revenue for supplement companies owned by his closest allies. Jack Littlefield and thousands of children like him across Eastern Washington may have to live with the policy consequences. When government health officials personally profit from the treatments they mandate, the system has moved beyond regulatory capture into territory that would raise serious ethical concerns in any other administration.

End Notes

1. Jesse Tinsley, "'Being autistic doesn't make you less human': Some Spokane parents with kids diagnosed with autism worry about RFK Jr.'s comments," The Spokesman-Review, April 29, 2025, spokesman.com.
2. American Medical Association, "AMA deeply concerned by reported USPSTF changes," Press Release, July 27, 2025, ama-assn.org. The AMA letter states: "I am writing to express our deep concern with the recent reports of your intention to remove all of the members of the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)."
3. Liz Essley Whyte and Nidhi Subbaraman, "RFK Jr., HHS to Link Autism to Tylenol Use in Pregnancy and Folate Deficiencies," The Wall Street Journal, September 5, 2025, wsj.com.
4. Viktor H. Ahlqvist et al., "Acetaminophen Use During Pregnancy and Children's Risk of Autism, ADHD, and Intellectual Disability," JAMA 331, no. 14 (April 9, 2024): 1205–14, doi.org/10.1001/jama.2024.3172.
5. Statement from the American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Physicians, and American Psychiatric Association, "Statement from Leading Physician Groups on USPSTF Change," July 28, 2025, aafp.org. The joint statement representing nearly 400,000 physicians warned of "an alarming erosion in reliance on scientific integrity" and noted that "increased political interference over the panel and its recommendations undermines the integrity of the task force."
6. Bloomberg, "Celebrity-Backed Startup Function Health Seeks $2 Billion Valuation," February 5, 2025; Function Health, "Function membership," official site; Fierce Healthcare, "Function Health offers a membership-based platform ... $499 per year," May 5, 2025; Associated Press, "Takeaways from AP's report on Dr. Casey Means' business interests," AP News, June 5, 2025; STAT News, "The company was valued at more than $40 million last year ... key angel investor is Hyman," October 7, 2024; Associated Press, "Dr. Casey Means co-founded Levels ... The company charges $199 per year for an app subscription...," AP News, June 5, 2025.
7. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., OGE Form 278e Financial Disclosure, 2024; see also STAT News, "Kennedy reported $326,056 in pay from Children's Health Defense" (Aug. 2023), and Washington Post, "RFK Jr. transferred 'Make America Healthy Again' trademark to ally Del Bigtree" (Dec. 2024).
8. "RFK Jr sought 'Make America Healthy Again' trademark for food supplements, vitamins, essential oils, and vaccines; application was transferred to MAHA Worldwide LLC, managed by Del Bigtree," The Guardian, January 30, 2025, theguardian.com.
9. American Civil Liberties Union, "Disability Rights and Privacy Advocates Raise Concerns with Proposed Autism 'Registry,'" Press Release, May 13, 2025, aclu.org. The letter from 80+ organizations warned of "fundamental privacy safeguards to prevent misuse and abuse" and emphasized that "autistic people's private data not be shared without our consent."
10. Research estimate based on CDC Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network prevalence (3.22% among 8-year-olds) applied to WA-5 child population, with adjustments for under-identification. See "Estimated number of children with autism in Washington's 5th Congressional District (WA-5)," Research Briefing Memo, Sept. 6, 2025. Key sources: CDC MMWR Surveillance Summary; CDC Autism Data; Families USA Congressional District Data.
11. Meredith Kile, "RFK Jr. Says People with Autism 'Will Never Pay Taxes, Hold a Job, Go on a Date,' Sparking Fierce Backlash," People, April 17, 2025, people.com. Kennedy made these remarks at his first press conference as HHS secretary on April 16, 2025.
12. Senator Bill Cassidy, concerned about "procedural and scientific integrity" following RFK Jr.'s overhaul of vaccine advisory leadership, called for delaying the panel's meeting, The Guardian, August 28, 2025, theguardian.com.