Study Identifies Large Overlap Between Children With Autism and Those With Medical Complexity, Analyzes Costs of Services

A Pediatrics study finds extensive overlap in children with autism and children with medical complexity and observes that these groups are generally treated separately in services, research and policy. The study, “Autism and Medical Complexity among Children in the U.S,” published in the March 2025 Pediatrics (published online Feb. 3) analyzed information from databases provided by the National Survey of Children’s Health and Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, selecting children ages 0-17. Medical complexity was defined as having multiple or severe chronic health conditions, often affecting multiple organ systems and resulting in major functional limitations. Researchers calculated the frequencies of having medical complexity or autism alone, or medical complexity with autism, and then compared expenses related to healthcare. The study found that autistic children accounted for approximately 35-40% of children with medical complexity, and up to 60% of autistic children were also children with medical complexity. Autistic children who also have medical complexity had the highest median expenditures, accounting for 5.4% of total child expenditures despite a population prevalence of 0.6%. The authors recommend research designed to understand the implications of this overlap for child service provision, caregiver support, and long-term outcomes. 

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.