Some U.S. states have registries and laws requiring that mental health professionals and physicians register autistic clients. They can be fined, disciplined, or lose their license if they don't report.
@autism101@actuallyautistic I'm from a registry state (NH) and it's one of the reasons I feel hesitant to pursue an official diagnosis.
The registry doesn't collect identifying data, thankfully. However, the idea is to collect data so legislators have a picture of how many people have been diagnosed, at what age, etc to be better able to make legislative decisions regarding what programs are needed.
In theory that sounds like noble intentions, but trouble being, I don't exactly have a lot of trust in the state to fund programs that are helpful.
But given the occasional but increasing political weaponisation of autism, especially in the intersection with trans rights, but also sometimes in other areas, we should be aware of this, and resist any attempts to weaken our medical privacy.