NEW AUTISM POLICY IS WHAT ONTARIO CAN AFFORD

   The Ontario government’s new approach to autism fixes the problems it can afford to fix, but parents of autistic children are, not surprisingly, disappointed because there is no additional funding in this week’s announcement by social services minister Lisa MacLeod.
   MacLeod’s policy aims to be equitable and sustainable, and it achieves that. Under the Liberal program the PCs inherited, three out of every four children with autism were stuck on a wait list, either for assessment or service. Those waits could extend for years, and the delay is critical because autism treatment is more effective when delivered at a young age.
    MacLeod promised to end those wait lists within 18 months by doubling the money spent on assessment to help 2,400 children waiting in that queue. There will be money for 23,000 other children who have been approved for service but aren’t getting it. Help will extend until the age of 18 and can amount to $140,000 in total for a child entering the program at two years of age. The focus is on children under six, whose families can get up to $20,000 a year.