Vaccines and autism In 1998,
anti-vaccine activist Andrew Wakefield released a fraudulent study that falsely linked the
MMR vaccine to autism (which was formally retracted by its publisher in 2010). Subsequent to its release, other scientifically unsupported theories (including "
vaccine overload" and the bodies of autistic children being unable to eliminate
thiomersal) increased in popularity. In the decades since, the ASA and its state and regional chapters have platformed, honored or elevated to leadership individuals who have made these or other unsupported claims (including those who have falsely argued or speculated that autistic children could widely benefit from
chelation or other
detoxification therapies). This has included the following individuals: •
James B. Adams • Dr. Kenneth A. Bock •
Dr. James Jeffrey Bradstreet •
Doreen Granpeesheh •
Dr. Martha Herbert •
Dr. Daniel A. Rossignol •
Stephen Shore • Lauren W. Underwood Thoughtful House Center for Children at the time they appeared at various ASA annual conferences in the mid- to late 2000s, and she and Herbert were most recently credited as advisors to the ASA in its 2021 annual report. In 2003, while serving on the ASA's national board of directors, In March 2019, the ASA made a formal statement affirming that there was "never any credible medical or scientific evidence linking vaccinations with autism" and that vaccines were "safe, effective, and life-saving." In April 2025, ASA leadership cosigned an open letter affirming that there was no causal link between vaccines and autism in response to controversial statements made by
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and anti-vaccine activist
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Branding The ASA and its state and regional chapters have historically utilized controversial puzzle-piece imagery in their branding, including a trademarked puzzle-piece ribbon (introduced in 1999) and a graphic of a boy's head interwoven with puzzle pieces. Some critics and researchers claim these types of symbols
stigmatize autistic people because they portray them as incomplete, mysterious or a problem in need of fixing and evoke brokenness and bafflement. In 2021, the ASA announced it was removing puzzle-piece imagery from its branding and had chosen a new logo consisting of interwoven, multicolored lines ("threads"), which the organization believed would emphasize "connection" and "create a calm, visual stimulation." As of 2025, the ASA has not fully retired its trademarked puzzle-piece ribbon. ==Founders==