IACC Reauthorized by Autism CARES Act to Continue Through 2019; HHS Seeks Nominations for Public Membership

On August 8, 2014, President Obama signed the Autism Collaboration, Accountability, Research, Education and Support (CARES) Act of 2014 (PDF – 256 KB) into law, reauthorizing and expanding the provisions of the Combating Autism Act of 2006 (PDF – 142 KB). New provisions include an increased focus on services and supports, a report on the needs of transitioning youth and adults, and the creation of an Autism Initiative within the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure accountability and ongoing implementation of autism activities across the Department. The new law also reauthorizes the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) to continue until September 30, 2019.

The IACC is a federal advisory committee composed of federal officials and non-federal public members, including autism self-advocates, family members, representatives of private autism organizations, and other public stakeholders. The committee is charged with:

• Providing annual updates on its Strategic Plan for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Research, which under the new law will be expanded to include recommendations on services and supports provision;
• Providing annual updates on its Summary of Advances in ASD Research, a document that summarizes each year's top ASD research advances;
• Providing advice and recommendations to the HHS Secretary regarding issues related to ASD;
• Providing a forum for public discussion of issues related to ASD.

As a federal advisory committee, the IACC does not have authority or appropriations to fund research or services activities, nor to implement federal programs. The IACC's role is to provide advice that can be used by federal agencies to guide them in setting program and funding priorities, and in developing partnerships with private organizations to address issues of importance to the autism community.

Under the Combating Autism Reauthorization Act of 2011 (covering the period from 2011-2014, PDF – 121 KB), the IACC completed several important projects, including issuing: a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius regarding the need to fill critical gaps in health coverage for people on the autism spectrum; a statement from the Committee on the 2012 update in the ASD diagnostic criteria, which emphasized the importance of basing healthcare and service provision decisions on the need of the individual; and an in-depth 2013 IACC Strategic Plan Update that analyzed progress made over a five-year period (2008-2012) toward implementing the recommendations in the IACC Strategic Plan.

Reflecting on the completion of the current IACC members' terms on September 30, 2014, IACC Chair Dr. Thomas Insel stated, "We deeply appreciate the contributions and accomplishments of the IACC members who served on the Committee from 2012-2014, and we look forward to working with the new committee, starting in 2015, to address the community's most pressing ASD research and services needs."

The Autism CARES Act extends the work of the IACC another 5 years to 2019. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is currently seeking nominations of individuals to serve as non-federal public members on the next iteration of the committee. Members of the public are welcome to nominate individuals with personal and/or professional experience with ASD for public membership on the committee. The Office of Autism Research Coordination (OARC) at the National Institutes of Health, which manages the IACC, will assist the Department in collecting public member nominations. Selections and appointments of public members will be made by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

For more information on the IACC public member nomination process, please see the 2014 IACC Call for Nominations Announcement.

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The IACC is a federal advisory committee that was created by Congress in an effort to accelerate progress in ASD research and services. The IACC provides advice to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on activities related to ASD, and works to improve coordination and communication across the Federal government and work in partnership with the autism community. The Committee is composed of officials from many different federal agencies involved in autism research and services, as well as people with ASD, parents, advocates, and other members of the autism community. The documents and recommendations produced by the IACC reflect the views of the Committee as an independent advisory body and the expertise of the members of the Committee, but do not represent the views, official statements, policies or positions of the Federal government. For more information on the IACC, please visit: www.iacc.hhs.gov.