The health secretary said he would prioritize studies into environmental causes while harshly discounting other factors scientists say are likely contributing to rising rates of the condition.

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said autism is a preventable disease and that the U.S. needs to stop denying the epidemic.

Kennedy described autism as a “preventable disease,” although researchers and scientists have identified genetic factors are associated with it and it’s not considered a disease.