Big numbers. Real people behind them.

Diagnosis patterns differ for boys and girls.

15.6% of boys and 8.2% of girls ages 3–17 had ever been diagnosed with ADHD in 2024; the overall figure is 12.0%. For current diagnosed conditions in 2023–2024: anxiety 10% of boys and 13% of girls, depression 3% and 5%, behavior disorders 10% and 5%.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17

Data:

ADHD: National Health Interview Survey, 2024. Anxiety, depression, behavior disorders: National Survey of Children’s Health, 2023–2024 (CDC page updated August 20, 2026)

Source:

CDC/NCHS FastStats; CDC children’s mental health data

“Ever diagnosed” ADHD is a lifetime measure and is not comparable with the current-diagnosis measures. These patterns describe who has been diagnosed. They do not establish the reason for an individual child’s symptoms and do not quantify how many girls go unrecognized.

Recognition is not equally distributed.

Compared with White children, Black children had 69% lower adjusted odds of an ADHD diagnosis (95% CI for the reduction 60%–76%) and Hispanic children 50% lower adjusted odds (95% CI 34%–62%). As odds ratios: White 1.00, Hispanic 0.50, Black 0.31.

Population:

N = 17,100; Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, kindergarten class of 1998–1999, followed through eighth grade

Data:

National kindergarten-to-eighth-grade cohort; published 2013

Source:

Morgan et al., Pediatrics, 2013

Adjusted diagnosis odds relative to White children in a historical observational cohort — not percentages of children, not current prevalence, and not proof that one mechanism caused the difference. The differences remained after measured confounders were statistically controlled.

Recognition often arrives in adulthood.

Of U.S. adults who reported current ADHD in 2023, 55.9% reported their first diagnosis at age 18 or older.

Population:

U.S. adults reporting current ADHD

Data:

October–November 2023 Rapid Surveys System

Source:

CDC MMWR, 2024

This is an adult self-reported measure. It does not establish a first-diagnosis age band for any particular group, and it is not evidence about screening accuracy.

Needs recognized, needs unmet.

20% of U.S. adolescents ages 12–17 reported unmet mental health care needs in the previous 12 months.

Population:

U.S. adolescents ages 12–17

Data:

2021–2023, NHIS-Teen

Source:

CDC children’s mental health data

This is not 20% of all children and it is not ADHD-specific. It is self-reported unmet need, not a measure of Attention Access eligibility.

How attention needs appear — and are missed.

NIMH describes inattentive presentations, differences in how attention needs appear and are recognized, and diagnosis that sometimes comes only in adulthood. Quiet behavior does not rule out a need for support.

Descriptive background, not a screening-accuracy or treatment-outcome claim. Screening can surface concerns; it does not diagnose, does not find every child, and only matters if it leads to appropriate follow-up.

A need that reaches far beyond one diagnosis.

Of U.S. children ages 3–17 had ever been diagnosed with a mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder, according to parent reports in 2021.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17

Data:

2021; trend study covers 2016–2021

Source:

Leeb et al., Preventing Chronic Disease, 2024

This broad group includes developmental, learning, and language conditions. It is not an ADHD-only rate, a current-diagnosis rate, or Attention Access's eligibility rate.

Anxiety became more common.

The prevalence of current, parent-reported diagnosed anxiety rose from 6.9% to 10.6% among U.S. children ages 3–17 between 2016 and 2022.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17

Data:

2016–2022

Source:

Casseus & Reichman, Infant and Child Development, 2025

Relative increase, not percentage points. The absolute increase was 3.7 percentage points. Survey trends do not establish a cause.

Depression rose over the same period.

The prevalence of current, parent-reported diagnosed depression rose from 3.1% to 4.6% among U.S. children ages 3–17 between 2016 and 2022.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17

Data:

2016–2022

Source:

Casseus & Reichman, Infant and Child Development, 2025

Relative increase, not percentage points. The absolute increase was 1.5 percentage points. This is not a finding about an Attention Access-funded program.

Attention support is a national need.

An estimated 7 million U.S. children ages 3–17 had a current ADHD diagnosis in 2024: 11.7%, according to the CDC's summary of a national parent survey.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17

Data:

2024; CDC page updated July 8, 2026

Source:

CDC, Data on ADHD in Children

Current diagnosis in 2024. Do not combine with the 2022 lifetime ADHD estimate or describe it as a 2026 survey.

A diagnosis does not mean support is in place.

About 30% of U.S. children ages 3–17 with current ADHD received neither ADHD medication nor behavior treatment in 2022.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17 with current ADHD

Data:

2022

Source:

Danielson et al., Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 2024

This measures two treatment types. It does not mean these children received no support of any kind, or that all would qualify for Attention Access funding.

Support often needs more than one doorway.

Among children with current ADHD in 2022, 77.9% had at least one co-occurring disorder, according to a national parent survey.

Population:

U.S. children ages 3–17 with current ADHD

Data:

2022

Source:

Danielson et al., Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 2024

Co-occurring conditions overlap. Their rates must not be added to estimate a total number of distinct children.

The burden can reach the whole family.

A 2003 study reported average annual direct and indirect costs of $2,728 for non-ADHD family members of ADHD patients, compared with $1,440 for family members of matched controls: about 1.9 times as much.

Population:

Family members in an older U.S. employer-based study

Data:

Historical study published in 2003; not current dollars

Source:

Swensen et al., Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: increased costs for patients and their families

Historical context only. These were direct plus indirect costs, not just medical claims, not every household, and not savings Attention Access can promise.