DHDD Newsletter – October 2024

As part of this work, our division published a CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report this month about adults with ADHD, featured in the “In the Spotlight” section below. The findings included the prevalence of ADHD in adults in our nation and some of the challenges people face in accessing care for ADHD. The research also renews our commitment to work towards a future in which all families have timely access to quality, evidence-based care, including treatment, education and employment supports and accommodations, and mental health services as needed. We will continue to make progress by partnering across sectors and disciplines. Recent work from some of our ADHD partners include commentaries on the importance of timely diagnosis and consistent treatment as well as access to care.

Before I close, I would like to express my sincere appreciation not only for ADHD partners, but for all those who collaborate with us to improve public health outcomes among people with disabilities and developmental concerns. Across the populations we serve, some experiences may be shared, while others differ—but together, we achieve meaningful progress every day.

With gratitude,
Karyl

Karyl Rattay, MD, MS, FAAP
DHDD Director

This month, CDC released a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among adults ages 18 and older across the U.S. The MMWR provides the first national estimates on prevalence of adult ADHD in more than a decade. Key findings highlight the substantial number of adults with ADHD, and the potential impact of national stimulant medication shortages:

• An estimated 15.5 million U.S. adults (6%) have ADHD, and over half were diagnosed in adulthood (≥18 years).
• About half of adults with ADHD have used telehealth for ADHD care.
• About 1 in 3 adults with ADHD reported taking stimulant medication, and the majority (71.5%) of these adults reported difficulty getting their prescriptions filled due to lack of availability.

Data for action:

• Public health professionals and healthcare providers can use national data to gain a better understanding of ADHD diagnosis and treatment patterns among U.S. adults.
• Policymakers can use information on diagnosis and treatment to help inform clinical care guidelines, develop strategies to address late diagnoses and medication shortages, and highlight the role of telehealth in ADHD care.

Additional findings and information related to CDC’s work on ADHD in adults can be found at:

• ADHD in Adults: An Overview|CDC
• Facts About ADHD in Adults|CDC

Tools and Resources

October is ADHD Awareness Month: Awareness is Key!

ADHD is often thought of as a childhood disorder but is now being more recognized in adults.  ADHD can impact daily living across a lifetime. The needs for support and treatment may differ for adults and children. Learn more about how you and your organization can help raise awareness for ADHD and support children and adults with ADHD and their families: ADHD Across the Lifetime: A Toolkit for Partner Organizations | Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) | CDC

#GoGreen4CP Recognizes World Cerebral Palsy Day

October 6th was World Cerebral Palsy Day. In 2023, CDC resumed activities within its Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network to help track and monitor cerebral palsy (CP) among U.S. children. CDC is committed to finding out how many people have CP, understanding the risk factors for CP, and helping parents and families recognize the early signs of CP.

CDC and its partners aim to improve early identification of children with CP and other developmental disabilities. CDC’s “Learn the Signs. Act Early.” Program promotes developmental monitoring so children and families can get the services and support they need as early as possible.

#GoGreen4CP and help raise awareness for CP today!

For more information on CP and to find out more about CDC’s CP work, please visit About Cerebral Palsy | Cerebral Palsy (CP) | CDC

2022 Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Data Summaries Now Available

CDC has released data summaries from the 2022 Hearing Screening and Follow-up Survey, which captures progress in meeting national Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) benchmarks. More than 6,200 infants with permanent hearing loss born in 2022 were identified through newborn hearing screening in the United States. Fewer than half (40.9%) of infants identified with permanent hearing loss were enrolled in early intervention services before 6 months of age. View the latest EHDI data to find out how many infants were screened, diagnosed, and enrolled in early intervention services in your state.

Disability Data Collection in Emergency Preparedness and Response

As part of a cooperative agreement with CDC, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) and consulting firm Ross Strategic worked to assess data collection and sharing methods on people with disabilities during public health emergencies and developed materials that jurisdictions can use to report data on people with disabilities to inform emergency preparedness, response, and recovery efforts. Resources are now available on CSTE’s website and include

• a standardized situation report template that can be used by jurisdictions for reporting data on people with disabilities in emergency response situational reports;
• educational resources on Collecting Data to Support People with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery and Population-level Publicly Available Disability Data Sources for Public Health Agencies; and

• a summary report including information on the process and methods used to develop these materials.

Health Promotion Materials for People with Disabilities

As a reminder this respiratory virus season, CDC has health promotion materials tailored to people with disabilities to help improve hand hygiene, cleaning and disinfection, mask wearing, and physical distancing behavior.

Visit the web page to access the user guide and materials, including posters, storybooks, audio files, and more.

Partner News and Announcements

National Survey of Children’s Health Data

The newest National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) data are available. Access the data as well as our new data brief, Adolescent Mental and Behavioral Health. The NSCH is the largest national- and state‐level survey on the health and well‐being of children, their families, and their communities, providing timely information and comprehensive data on a range of topics such as:

• Health conditions and functional difficulties
• Social and emotional well-being
• Health-related behaviors
• Healthcare service access and use
• Preparation for transition to adult health care
• School environment and engagement
• Family life and activities
• Adverse childhood experiences
• Community activities or experiences

These data are essential to understanding the health status and health services needs of children across the nation and in your state and community. For more information, contact the Health Resources and Services Administration via email at NSCH@hrsa.gov.

Free At-Home COVID-19 Tests, Including More Accessible Option

Every U.S. household can order free at-home COVID-19 tests through a partnership between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) and the United States Postal Service (USPS). These tests will detect the currently circulating COVID-19 variants and are intended for use through the end of 2024. Each order will include four tests.

One of the available options is the Orasure InteliSwab test, which is more accessible for people who are blind or have low vision, as well as people who have low manual dexterity.

For more information, including ordering instructions and information about the features that make the InteliSwab test more accessible, please visit ACL.gov/AccessibleTests.