President Donald Trump’s recent public statements have ignited a storm of controversy across the United States, as he doubled down on claims linking autism to Tylenol use during pregnancy and childhood vaccines—despite decades of scientific research disproving any such connection. The president’s remarks, delivered at a White House press conference on September 26, 2025, have drawn swift criticism from medical experts, state officials, and public health advocates, who warn that his assertions risk undermining public health and sowing confusion among American families.
Trump, flanked by Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other senior officials, told reporters that pregnant women and young children should avoid Tylenol, also known by its generic name acetaminophen, and suggested that both the medication and childhood vaccines could be behind rising autism rates. According to Bloomberg, Trump declared, “Don’t take Tylenol. Fight like hell not to take it,” and implied that women who can’t “tough it out” might still choose to use the drug. He offered no evidence for these sweeping claims, which run counter to the mainstream medical consensus.
Health experts were quick to push back. David Mandell, associate director of the Center for Autism Research at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, explained to Bloomberg that while early studies hinted at a possible link between acetaminophen and autism, more recent, rigorous research from Japan and Sweden found no such connection when controlling for key factors like maternal fever—an established risk factor for neurodevelopmental delays. “Everybody knows a fever is really bad for the developing brain. That’s good science,” said Robert L. Hendren, a psychiatrist specializing in autism spectrum disorders at the University of California, San Francisco. “For Trump to tell mothers that they’re wimps if they take Tylenol—and if their kid gets autism and they’re the cause of it—that’s just a shame.”
Acetaminophen remains the only pain reliever widely considered safe for use during pregnancy, a fact confirmed by decades of research and medical guidance. Nevertheless, Trump’s comments have left many expectant mothers anxious and unsure. As Bloomberg columnist Lisa Jarvis noted, “That admonishment could easily dissuade American women from treating a symptom that could endanger their child.”
The president’s remarks extended beyond Tylenol to embrace long-discredited theories about vaccines. He repeated claims that the timing and combination of childhood immunizations could contribute to autism, and suggested that the vaccine schedule should be drastically altered—proposing, for instance, that the Hepatitis B shot be delayed until age 12 and that the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), and chickenpox vaccines be administered separately. Pediatricians were quick to point out that, in the U.S., combination vaccines are standard and single shots for those diseases aren’t even available. Trump’s assertions, according to Bloomberg, “endanger all children” by fueling vaccine hesitancy at a time when confidence in immunizations is already waning.
Adding to the confusion, Trump and Secretary Kennedy announced that leucovorin, a form of folic acid, might help treat symptoms of autism—a claim not supported by robust scientific evidence. The only studies conducted so far have been small and methodologically limited, with the largest enrolling just 80 children. Nevertheless, the Food and Drug Administration has already moved to add information to the drug’s label to allow its use in treating cerebral folate deficiency, a rare neurodevelopmental disorder associated with autism. Connie Kasari, a founding member of UCLA’s Center for Autism Research and Treatment, told Bloomberg, “Suggesting that there’s something out there for families who are pretty desperate to do anything that they can to help their children is a waste of time, a waste of money, and honestly a waste of hope. Jumping to this kind of conclusion is really dangerous.”
The president’s controversial health pronouncements come amid broader policy shifts that have sent ripples through the healthcare sector. The Trump administration is reportedly considering steep tariffs on pharmaceutical imports, prompting global drugmakers from the UK, EU, South Korea, and Japan to ramp up U.S. manufacturing and boost inventories. Thanks to trade agreements, these countries face capped tariffs of around 15%, which helps mitigate supply disruptions, but the move has still unsettled the industry and raised concerns about drug availability and costs, according to Bloomberg.
State-level leaders have not remained silent. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has emerged as one of Trump’s most vocal critics, both on health policy and economic grounds. On September 23, 2025, Pritzker signed an executive order directing all state agencies to prepare for 4% budget cuts and begin building reserves, citing what he called the “disastrous” impact of Trump’s federal policies. “There are hundreds of millions of dollars that are going to have to be made up for as a result of the cuts the federal government is making, including in health care and nutritional assistance, but also across the economy with the tariffs that are impacting businesses in Illinois,” Pritzker told the Chicago Tribune.
On the vaccine front, the Illinois Department of Public Health broke with the federal government, issuing its own guidance after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adopted new policies limiting access to certain vaccinations. The department cited the federal government’s abandonment of “rigorous scientific review processes for vaccine-related decisions,” and emphasized that “the CDC’s gold-standard practices, followed for decades, have prevented serious illness and saved millions of lives nationwide.” Pritzker himself was blunt, stating, “At a time when the federal government is abdicating its responsibility to provide clear, science-informed guidance, Illinois is stepping up. Illinois will continue to empower providers and families across our state with the information and access they need to guard against illness and disease.”
Pritzker also weighed in on the Tylenol-autism debate, dismissing the president’s claims as scientifically baseless. “I honestly think that there is something wrong with the President that he not only doesn’t understand the science, but apparently can’t pronounce the words and doesn’t really do any reading,” Pritzker said, referencing the decades of research on acetaminophen safety. He urged the public to consult their doctors, quipping, “Go talk to your doctor and ask them if they think that Donald Trump and RFK Jr. are actually issuing health orders that make sense for the country.”
As the debate rages on, experts stress that the causes of autism are complex, involving hundreds of genes and, potentially, environmental factors that remain under investigation. What’s clear, they say, is that easy answers and miracle cures remain elusive—and that misleading statements from the nation’s highest office only make it harder for families to navigate already difficult decisions. In the words of Bloomberg’s Lisa Jarvis, “As they sift through the raft of misleading and false information from their president, parents would do well to remember that the person with the best medical advice is their doctor.”
The controversy over Trump’s statements has become more than just a political squabble—it’s a test of whether science or speculation will guide the nation’s health policies in the months ahead.
