"This is an individual tragedy as well. ... we have to recognize, we are doing this to our children, and we have to put an end to it," said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during a press conference on the rates of autism and developmental disabilities in the U.S. The secretary spoke on the rise in autism among children and pointed to an increased risk for young boys. He reiterated his previous promise to follow the science to find the cause for the condition and said the department would look at all potential causes, including environmental and genetic factors.