It's not just California, Dad!

I wish this article had a little more meat to it. Ah yes, but there is always our good friend Google, yes?

To date autism has resisted every attempt to find a cluster, with the sole exception of parental migration seeking better services. The findings in VA mirror those in CA, NJ, RI and Atlanta.

I wonder how high the rate will have to climb before our officials in Washington get serious about identifying the triggering toxin. I also wonder how truthful they will be should that toxin turn out to be bad news for them or certain vested interests.

78% in 3 years in VA and nearly 100% in 4 years in CA. The first jump came in the early 90’s and is quickly approaching that age when those left unremediated go into residential care. Most of these teens become wards of the state they reside in, and most of the states pay for the residential care out of their HHS and Medicaid funds. Hang on, the ride is just cranking up.

michigan has a big rise in autisim too. cant fin the article
donna

I found out kind of by accident (I have no children afflicted with autism) that United Healthcare of Ohio does not cover any autism-related services. How is that possible? What do people do - go bankrupt and go on medicaid? I can’t believe this is true, but I double-checked.

jao

[%sig%]

Most insurance policies do not cover autism, and in fact exclude it by name. They say it is not a “physiological” problem, but a “logical” (cognitive) one. Other problems frequently not covered are CAPD, Dyslexia and until just very recently depression (took a court order in CT to force insurance to cover depression).

There may be plans out there which cover some or all of these conditions, but a great many do not (my insurance which operates in 4 states does not).

To answer your question, yes, you are expected to spend everything you have, remortgage your house, sell your car, cash in your IRA’s (at heavy penalty), hoc your engagement ring, whatever to get what you need. Then if you are very, very lucky you can get medicaid, which still does not cover most forms of therapy for your child, and which also hasa limit to how much you can spend on treatment in the child’s lifetime.

Why do you think that historically such a high number of autistic kids were institutionalized around puberty after parents had relinquished custodial rights to the state?