# Multimedia 

Multimedia 

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Apple Podcasts 

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Spotify 

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Cato Podcast • April 23, 2026 

# Subsidize a Diagnosis, Get More Diagnoses 

Medicaid spending on autism therapy jumped from $300 million to $2 billion in just eight states over seven years. Cato’s Ryan Bourne, Jeff Singer, and Adam Omary argue the cause isn’t an epidemic; it’s distorted incentives and a diagnostic manual that keeps expanding.

[![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) 
This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/). 

##### Featuring 

[![Ryan Bourne](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2021-01/Ryan%20Bourne.jpg?itok=nv8-2r7d)](/people/ryan-bourne) 

##### [Ryan Bourne](/people/ryan-bourne)

R. Evan Scharf Chair for the Public Understanding of Economics, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/MrRBourne) [ 

](mailto:rbourne@cato.org) 

[![jeff-singer-cropped.jpg](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2024-05/jeff-singer-cropped.jpg?itok=G_0nEnx7)](/people/jeffrey-singer) 

##### [Jeffrey A. Singer](/people/jeffrey-singer)

Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/dr4liberty) [ 

](mailto:jsinger@cato.org) 

[![Adam Omary - cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2025-12/Adam%20Omary-cropped.jpg?itok=iwSLu-pT)](/people/adam-omary) 

##### [Adam Omary](/people/adam-omary)

Research Fellow

[ 

](https://x.com/AdamOmaryPhD)