another delay, another disappointment for parents of autistic children in ontario. this week’s news that the provincial government’s new-and-improved autism plan won’t be fully in place for more than a year wasn’t what parents wanted to hear.
their frustration is understandable. this is the fifth reinvention of the program in less than four years. families are facing enormous emotional and financial pressure. the clock is ticking for children awaiting autism treatment, which is most effective when delivered at a young age. lacking timely support from the government, many parents are putting themselves into debt to help their children.
that said, it isn’t surprising that the government can’t double the size of the system in just a few months. deciding to increase funding from $300 million to $600 million was the easy part, although it’s a big commitment. creating the capacity to help far more children won’t be nearly so simple.
todd smith, minister of children, community and social services, has taken a huge step forward by accepting the recommendations of a provincial advisory panel that called for a needs-based autism program. that’s a far better approach than the first one the pcs took, which would have given all families some money, but didn’t take needs into account.