Prevalence and incidence of autism spectrum disorder in an Israeli population.

Michael and colleagues counted Israeli kids with autism. They used 2010 health and education records. No new tests were run. They simply tallied existing diagnoses.

About 1 in every 200 Israeli children had an ASD diagnosis. That is roughly half the 1 % figure often quoted for the United States. The team also noted new cases kept appearing at a steady rate.

Dinstein et al. (2024) later used the same data sets and saw the rate nearly double by 2021. The jump was largest among toddlers, hinting at better detection, not a true surge in autism.

Kerub et al. (2021) looked closer at Bedouin toddlers. They found equal screen-positive rates but far fewer completed evaluations. Their work shows the national 0.5 % figure hides an access gap, not a real ethnic difference.

Morales-Hidalgo et al. (2018) and Morales Hidalgo et al. (2021) found Spanish schoolchildren hover around 1 % to 1.5 %. The Israel-Spain gap suggests either stricter Israeli criteria or under-counting in Israel, not a true population difference.

If you plan services in Israel, budget for at least twice the 2010 caseload. Use the newer Ilan numbers for forward planning. When you screen toddlers, track who never finishes the diagnostic path; Orly’s data say lost families can equal found families. Finally, compare your local count to the 0.5 % baseline—falling short may flag referral bottlenecks, not low autism rates.