REUTERS/via SNO Sites/Kevin Lamarque

U.S. President Donald Trump, with Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Mehmet Oz, U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jay Bhattacharya, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., makes an announcement linking autism to childhood vaccines and to the use of popular pain medication Tylenol for pregnant women and children, claims which are not backed by decades of science, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 22, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

On Monday, September 22, President Donald Trump and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a claim that the use of acetaminophen during pregnancy is possibly linked to autism.  

Acetaminophen is the main ingredient in the drug, Tylenol, and other flu and cold medications. The Trump Administration and the FDA will be notifying physicians that it is “strongly recommend that women limit Tylenol use during pregnancy.”  

Adding on to the claim, President Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested the childhood vaccine schedule and the amount of vaccines children get can contribute and/or increase the chances of autism.  

Major medical groups have strongly rejected this claim and shared that there have been no steps taken to prove this claim is true.  

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) immediately rejected this claim linking acetaminophen during pregnancy to autism; calling it “highly concerning,” “irresponsible” and “not backed by the full body of scientific evidence.”  

Dr. Steven J. Fleischman, President of ACOG, spoke out, “Acetaminophen is one of the few options available to pregnant patients to treat pain and fever, which can be harmful to pregnant women when left untreated.” 

The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) repeated that acetaminophen is an “appropriate medication” to treat pain and fever during pregnancy. “Untreated fever, particularly in the first trimester, increases the risks of miscarriage, birth defects, and premature birth, and untreated pain can lead to maternal depression, anxiety, and high blood pressure” SMFM said in a statement.  

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reacted to the claim that children’s vaccines can be linked to autism. “Studies have repeatedly found no credible link between life-saving childhood vaccines and autism.” The group said in a statement.  

President Trump also claimed that get too many shots early in life, implying that children’s immune systems get overwhelmed by vaccinations. However, the AAP addressed this claim. “Spacing out or delaying vaccines means that children will not have immunity against these diseases at times where they are most at risk” AAP stated.  

This story is still developing.