Powerful Parent of Autistic son

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Please forgive me if this story has already made it onto WP. It is from October, 2007:


Families with autistic children will get long-sought help whichever side wins the federal election.

In a policy duel both the Government and Labor this morning have announced a range of assistance measures for autistic children, who number about one in every 160 children in Australia.

The Prime Minister, John Howard, has acknowledged there are "major gaps" in services for such children.

He revealed a Coalition Government would spend $190 million over five years to assist children with "autism spectrum disorders".

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/how ... 56137.html

Australia is lucky enough to have had Tim Fischer as a former Deputy Prime Minister. Tim Fischer left politics to spend more time with his family after his now teenage son was diagnosed with Autism.

I suspect Tim Fischer himself is Aspie, he famously has an obsession with trains.

The interesting part of the story is that John Howard said,

It helps to have friends in high places.

Helen

It's good to see, that your government wants their money to be used to help the kids, instead for scientific research.

CockneyRebel, are you British? Surely you're not making that statement about the U.S. because where I live, our government-funded services for Autistics are generous to a fault! Most of my kid's earlier therapies were funded by non-income based government programs and if we had to put a dollar figure on what he has gotten I'd say it would be around $300,000! And, that's in less than 3 years. Plus, all of the services he gets through school are funded by the public school system which is a government agency.

Income is not a factor. They do not penalize you if you're a high earner or even rich. The support comes if the child needs it and it's deemed necessary. I am one of hundreds of parents who benefit from the generosity of our government. Not to mention all the laws we have on our books that guarantee our kids a free and appropriate education.

Unless that money is allocated in a way that trickles down to the families for direct utilization, those families will still be fighting uphill battles to get even some of the basic services for their kids.

Why? Do I act British?

I have been unable to obtain any service from government agencies or the schools. I was denied many services and therapies because I slipped through the cracks- I was developing just well enough that I could be excluded from being given any help, but not well enough to lead a normal childhood.

Dude, your name is CockneyRebel. That's why I asked were to British. Lots of Brits on board.

How old are you and do you have Aspergers or Autism? Services for Aspergers are harder to come by because there's the perception that it's more of a social and developmental thing. However, depending on where you're located, you may very well be able to get services for Aspergers if you're a certain age. It depends.

My son has an official Autism diagnosis and it opened the floodgate for support which we are eternally grateful for.

I am 18, went in for autism screening in 1993, one year before the APA acknowledged the existence of Asperger's. My official diagnosis (only obtained last summer) is Asperger's Syndrome, but I think classic HFA is a better description based on my language delays when I was younger. The issue is that here in the Cincinnati area diagnostic services are poor and hard to come by; I was denied diagnosis and help on the basis of high IQ, because the doctors simply equated autism to mental retardation.

http://autismaus.com.au/aca/

You're lucky then, because I've had parents tell me how they've been denied services. I assure you, you're in the minority.

Actually, I am. Gee, some people are serious. We should all be happy, and enjoy life. :O)

That goes for every person on this planet.

Orwell, sounds like you didn't get a diagnosis when you were younger. And, it came back Aspergers. Like I said, a diagnosis of Aspergers is different. There are some states and counties that give services, but many don't because Aspergers is seen as a social and developmental issue. Even insurance companies (like ours) will give certain therapies to Autism patients, but nothing for Aspergers because it doesn't meet their requirements for a medical condition.

Here's the thing. I've said this many times on this board before. All the people out there who continually say that Aspergers is not a disability give more fuel to government agencies and insurers not to cover it because they're fish are testing the waters and listening to what people are saying. Even some school districts don't support Asperger services. I think many in the community need to change that and push for more services, espeically for younger kids because that's when it's pertinent to change some of the behaviors so they don't become lifetime burdens.

You know?

Beau, can I ask you a few questions: 1) How old were you when you got your diagnosis, 2) Where do you live (state/county/city), and 3) Who gave you your diagnosis?

Services change dramatically when you become an adult. But, if you get your diaganosis and into Early Intervention younger, there's a bounty of help out there. Now. People in rural and less developed areas do have problems for the obvious reasons. However, when the kid reaches school ages there are laws that help. The laws state that if a district does not have adequate Autism Services then they have to fund a program and that could mean someone coming to your house to give intervention.

Where we live, I've seen a mix of all kinds of things even within one county. There is a city close by us in a neighboring county that did not have programs set up, so they actually funded private programs for years for Autism kids to go to.

Depends on where you life. My best friend has to fight and fight and fight to get any sort of support for her son -- He's 13 and is an Aspie.

I agree, it is very very inconsistent across the US what you will get. First, we are a nation where much is left in the hands of state and local governments. Even when you are talking federal dollars, they are often apportioned to state and local agencies to administer. Second, the gatekeepers to all services are individual human beings and, therefore, the level of understanding and ability to provide access is going to vary according to the experience and personality of the specific people you encounter. Third, in some regions of our vast country the experts and opportunities for services simply do not exist, either by luck or demographics.

I have been lucky to get all I have needed for my son through our school, but I know that is not the case nationwide. It has often surprised me to read the experiences of other parents, the quality varies so widely.

Good post. We do live in an area that is probably one of the best in the nation. But, property taxes are high. State taxes are higher. Local taxes are high. I'm glad my son is benefitting from our tax dollars because they don't penalize families based on higher income. Also, my son has an official Autism diagnosis and that makes all the difference. The OPs article is on Autism, not Aspergers. So, that's why I chimed in. However, I do know some regions of the country can't keep up with the number of diagnosis so services are lacking. And, rural and poorer areas have challenges as well. What much of it boils down to is too many cases of Autism and not enough people to service them.

There are some areas near us that do recognize Aspergers. But, they are unique. I've yet to hear of any insurance company that covers Aspergers. I do think Aspergians need to spend time focusing on these issues instead of demeaning organizations that are putting Autism in the forefront and really opening up doors for more and more services for Autism.

Thanks to the recognition it's getting and all the intervention programs, I really think my son's generation of Autism will have a better and brighter future than those before it.