OPINION: Supporting Autism Awareness Month by standing up for families
An oft-quoted African proverb tells us “it takes a village to raise a child.” This concept becomes even more affecting when the “child” in question has an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). In this case, the “villagers” also include doctors, counselors, therapists, other medical professionals, specialists, and agency administrators as parents struggle to create the best possible life for their child with autism.
April is Autism Awareness Month and so I am urging all of us — though you may not be personally affected — to use this time to be “a light” to the one in every 68 children in our nation affected by the disorder. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes and cancer combined. Furthermore, autism costs our nation more than $238 billion per year, and is expected to increase significantly over the next decade. These statistics are sobering and so too are some of the many hot-button issues affecting this segment of our population. Securing adequate funding for support services since children and adults with autism require more specialized and individualized care is a good example of the challenges autism presents to individuals and their families. Then there is the question of early intervention and inclusion as a quality of life indicator.