Trump’s Tylenol-autism claim divides Americans, deepens mistrust in health agencies

The latest KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust, conducted Sept. 23–29, 2025, captures how misinformation and politics are reshaping Americans’ views of autism, vaccines and public health leadership. The national survey of 1,334 adults finds that while most Americans have heard President Donald J. Trump’s claim linking Tylenol use during pregnancy to autism, few believe it.

Even fewer trust federal health authorities to set the record straight.

The poll highlights a deep and widening partisan divide in how Americans interpret health information, echoing post-pandemic tensions that continue to define public confidence in science. Trust in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has fallen to its lowest level since the midst of the pandemic, while physicians remain among the few voices patients still rely on for credible guidance.