The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is launching a new initiative to provide researchers with access to claims data and electronic medical records of Medicare and Medicaid enrollees diagnosed with autism. The effort aims to deepen scientific understanding of autism and other chronic conditions. The project involves a data-sharing agreement between the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which collectively hold health data on nearly 150 million Americans. Researchers can examine anonymized datasets to explore patterns, treatment outcomes, and potential causes linked to autism. "We're using this partnership to uncover the root causes of autism and other chronic diseases," said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a statement announcing the program.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a plan Wednesday to use medical data and records from people on Medicaid and Medicare to help study autism although experts say it's unlikely to help reveal the condition's root causes. The program will involve a data sharing agreement between the National Institutes of Health, the government’s health research arm, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which has access to claims data from nearly 150 million Americans across the country.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said on Wednesday the agencies have partnered to enable research around the root causes of autism spectrum disorder. The partnership will help NIH to build a real-world data platform enabling advanced research across claims data, electronic medical records, and consumer wearables. CMS and NIH will start this partnership by establishing a data use agreement under CMS' Research Data Disclosure Program focused on Medicare and Medicaid enrollees with a diagnosis of autism.

HHS will tap into Medicare and Medicaid data in its search for the root causes of autism. The database will draw from insurance claims, medical records and data from wearable technology such as smartwatches. It is one of the first steps in HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s bid to find the causes.

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