Access to Part C, Early Intervention for children younger than 4 years evaluated for autism spectrum disorder.
Black toddlers evaluated for autism are only half as likely to receive Part C Early Intervention as White toddlers.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team looked at Part C Early Intervention records for kids under four who were checked for autism.
They counted how many children actually got Part C services and compared Black and White toddlers.
What they found
Only half of the children received Part C after the autism check.
Black toddlers had much lower odds of getting services than White toddlers.
How this fits with other research
Magaña et al. (2012) and Barton et al. (2019) already showed Black children start autism care later and get lower-quality help.
Scott et al. (2026) found the same 50 % Part C gap in Fragile X babies, so the problem crosses diagnoses.
Fombonne et al. (2022) showed Black and White preschoolers look the same at referral, so the gap is not about symptom severity.
Why it matters
You can’t assume an autism referral turns into Part C services, especially for Black families.
Add a follow-up step: call the Part C office with the family, check enrollment, and document the outcome.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Health disparities are defined as preventable differences in the opportunities to achieve optimal health outcomes experienced by marginalized and underrepresented communities. For families with autistic children, health disparities limit accessing early intervention services-which have been found to improve quality of life and other outcomes. One specific early intervention service in the United States is Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part C Early Intervention programs, which are federally funded interventions for children birth-to-three with developmental delays. This study adds to this topic by examining which factors impact accessing Part C, Early Intervention services for children who were evaluated for autism. Results showed that only half of the sample received these services despite there being concerns about development for all children. In addition, results showed that those who identified as Black had decreased odds of having accessed Part C, Early Intervention compared to those who identified as White. These results suggest that there are disparities when it comes to accessing important early intervention services that may be negatively impacting the Black autistic community.
Autism : the international journal of research and practice, 2024 · doi:10.1177/13623613241229150