This article summarizes the recommendations the IA Autism Council is presenting to the government in order to give the most support to children and adults affected by autism. Currently, most children that are diagnosed with Autism, are put on a long waiting list for the Ill & Handicapped Waiver and they have to wait 18months or longer to access Medicaid insurance and other support like respite services for the parents. Some children, like Brycen, are found to have an additional diagnosis that may qualify them for the Intellectual Disablities Waiver which currently does not have a waiting list, but what about those children that are found to only have Autism or Aspergers? They not only sit on a waiting list to start services with I&H, but then this waiver only takes them to age 18 and then the parents need to fight to find a different waiver they may qualify for. We all know that at this time, Autism is a lifelong disorder...it does not disappear at age 18 like this waiver seems to think it does. Improvements need to be made to form a specific Autism Waiver that is specific to the needs of families of children with autism. We all know that early intervention with children diagnosed with Autism is of the uttermost importance in order to make as much progress as possible with socialization skills and speech delays. Hundreds, if not thousands, of adults with autism in Iowa currently do not qualify for Medicaid insurance and do not have the means to hold a good paying job, housing, etc without the assistance of a support staff, but without services, they cannot get support staff to help them live their lives as independently as possible. Much less most private insurance companies will not pay for therapies needed by children and adults with Autism. So what do these families do? They either do not have their children receive the necessary therapies because they can not afford them, cannot afford transporting them to and from, and cannot afford to take off work to accompany them to the therapies. OR the family chooses to go deep into debt because they want to do anything possible to help their child.
As you can see, I am very passionate about this subject and I was long before Brycen was diagnosed with Autism. This is a rising epidemic in Iowa, the country and across the world, but it seems that though they are talking about it at government sessions, nothing is being done to help these children, families and adults out!
1 IN 110 CHILDREN ARE CURRENTLY DIAGNOSED!
http://www.kwwl.com/global/story.asp?s=11889857
"When one door of happiness closes, another opens;
but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us."
Helen Keller
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Autism and Our Family
"Autism"----It's one word that can change the life of a child and family in so many ways. Autism Spectrum Disorders are being diagnosed at a rate of 1 in 68 children currently. If you do not already know someone that has been diagnosed, the statistics say it won't be long before you do.
Our son developed typically until around the time he turned 2 years old. We heard words...we saw him play with other kids...we watched as he played with his toys appropriately...we made eye contact with him...overall we understood his wants and needs. In a matter of a few months, that was all taken away from him. He began lining up toys, lost all of his words and signs except for one word "ball", ignored other kids, could not sleep through the night, lost eye contact and the ability to follow directions, and he had no way of letting us know what he wanted or how he felt. It was heartbreaking to see something happening to our child that we couldn't stop!
Brycen began receiving home therapy 1-2 times per month for about 6 months before we realized it wasn't just developmental delays. We knew it was Autism...we just didn't want to say it outloud to anyone. He was officially diagnosed with Autism (classic form and regressive), as well as Mental Retardation in August 2009 by the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
We continue to learn as we make our way through this journey with Brycen and we will continue to share this journey with you on this blog! The blog has been a great therapy for us to be able to vent our frustrations and struggles with accepting that we have a child with special needs, while sharing how blessed we are to have a child teach us what life truly means. It has also been a great way to inform others of his progress and changes over the last couple of years.
Thank you for your support of Brycen and our family! We hope you are able to learn something through this blog no matter if you are a parent of a child with special needs or a neurotypical child, a teacher or therapist, a family member, or just someone that is interested in the journey that a family goes on as they learn their child is battling a life-long disorder.
Our son developed typically until around the time he turned 2 years old. We heard words...we saw him play with other kids...we watched as he played with his toys appropriately...we made eye contact with him...overall we understood his wants and needs. In a matter of a few months, that was all taken away from him. He began lining up toys, lost all of his words and signs except for one word "ball", ignored other kids, could not sleep through the night, lost eye contact and the ability to follow directions, and he had no way of letting us know what he wanted or how he felt. It was heartbreaking to see something happening to our child that we couldn't stop!
Brycen began receiving home therapy 1-2 times per month for about 6 months before we realized it wasn't just developmental delays. We knew it was Autism...we just didn't want to say it outloud to anyone. He was officially diagnosed with Autism (classic form and regressive), as well as Mental Retardation in August 2009 by the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
We continue to learn as we make our way through this journey with Brycen and we will continue to share this journey with you on this blog! The blog has been a great therapy for us to be able to vent our frustrations and struggles with accepting that we have a child with special needs, while sharing how blessed we are to have a child teach us what life truly means. It has also been a great way to inform others of his progress and changes over the last couple of years.
Thank you for your support of Brycen and our family! We hope you are able to learn something through this blog no matter if you are a parent of a child with special needs or a neurotypical child, a teacher or therapist, a family member, or just someone that is interested in the journey that a family goes on as they learn their child is battling a life-long disorder.
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