MAGA attorney general sues Tylenol maker over alleged autism links

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the makers of Tylenol over its alleged links to autism in children.

The state became the first to sue Johnson & Johnson and spinoff company Kenvue after President Donald Trump claimed that using the over-the-counter pain reliever during pregnancy can cause autism, although no such link has been proven, reported The Texas Tribune.

Paxton, a Republican ally of the president, alleged in his suit filed Tuesday that Johnson & Johnson, which sold Tylenol for decades, and Kenvue, which has sold the drug since 2023, knowingly withheld evidence about Tylenol’s links to autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

The suit also alleges that Kenvue was set up to protect Johnson & Johnson from liability over Tylenol.

Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., announced last month they had updated guidance advising pregnant women against taking acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, as a contributing factor in autism.

Some studies have suggested a possible correlation between Tylenol use during pregnancy and having a child with autism, but others have refuted those findings, and major medical associations rejected the administration's claims as potentially harmful.