Families with autistic children and their advocates praise the concept of a new state commission on autism but say it falls short of tackling real issues.
Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder signed a bill into law Monday in Springfield creating the Missouri Commission on Autism Spectrum Disorders and an Office of Autism Services in the Department of Mental Health.
But advocates say it’s window dressing for the larger issue Republican leaders have declined to address: requiring health insurance companies to cover behavioral, speech and physical therapies for autism.
Most insurance companies classify autism as a pre-existing condition, according to parents of children who have the neurological disorder and the Burrell Autism Center in Springfield.
“It won’t even cover speech therapy because the children did not lose their speech due to an accident,” said Springfield resident Elizabeth Obrey, 39, a mother of three children who are diagnosed autistic — ages 3, 5 and 15.
Autism is a brain development disorder that affects a child’s social interaction and communications, affecting one in every 150 children. Early intervention before the child reaches the age of 3 has been shown to help them overcome the disorder and lead productive lives, said Susie Henderson, director of the Burrell Autism Center on E. Bradford Parkway, where the bill-signing ceremony was held.
The disorder is treated through intense physical, behavioral and speech therapy, Henderson said. “So many of the things that are needed are not covered by health care.”
Before signing the legislation, Senate Bill 768, Kinder touted new efforts by Missouri state government to pour more tax money into services for autism. About $12.4 million in new funding was secured for autism-related state services in this year’s budget, Kinder said.
But what parents like Obrey say they need is not more government assistance, but government regulation requiring private health insurers to insure all medical issues arising from autism.
Kinder said a mandate for autism treatments could force health insurers to raise premiums on everyone.
“We’ve enacted many mandates. They are proven to drive the cost up in health insurance and prevent people from being able to afford health insurance,” Kinder said. “That’s a very careful balance that needs to be struck.”
In speaking about autism, Kinder acknowledged the work of Springfield resident Jason Wert, who has documented raising his 6-year-old autistic son, Eli, on a popular local blog, lifeofjason.com.
Wert says he spends 20 percent of his income on out-of-pocket therapists and treatments for his son.
“The insurance company won’t help at all,” Wert said.
Wert said without government intervention, “parents are helpless.”
“This is something if they don’t get involved, nothing is going to happen,” Wert said.
Henderson said more intense early childhood therapy could save taxpayer money by reducing the number of developmentally disabled people who enter assisted living facilities. “We can pay upfront or we can pay up later,” he said.
Six states have laws on the books requiring health insurance companies to cover all autism-related treatments. Louisiana’s legislature just sent its governor a similar bill, said state Rep. Sam Page, D-Creve Coeur.
The legislation, which was never heard on the House floor, was co-sponsored by Springfield Reps. Charlie Norr and Sara Lampe, who attended Monday’s bill signing.
Page, who is running for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor, sponsored legislation this year that would have required health coverage be extended to children and adults with autism.
Treatments for neurological disorders such as cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injuries, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases all get health insurance coverage, said Page, a physician.
“Essentially all neurological conditions, except autism, are covered,” Page said. “These kids have a real opportunity to have real careers. Without early intervention, then they’re on the path to institutionalization.”
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