In Indiana, Sean and Michele Trivedi get the same type of therapy for their 11-year-old daughter. But they pay $3,000 a year and their health insurance covers the rest.

Two families. Two states. Big difference in out-of-pocket costs.

If autism advocates get their way, more states will follow Indiana’s lead by requiring health insurers to cover intensive and costly behavior therapy for autism.

In the past two years, six states — Texas, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Florida, South Carolina, Louisiana — passed laws requiring such coverage, costing in some cases up to $50,000 a year per child.

The powerful advocacy group Autism Speaks has endorsed bills in New Jersey, Virginia and Michigan and is targeting at least 10 more states in 2009, including New York, California and Ohio.

Other states, including Illinois, have similar bills in the works but aren’t working directly with Autism Speaks.

“This is the hottest trend in mandates we’ve seen in a long time,” said J.P. Wieske, a lobbyist for an insurance coalition that argues that these state requirements drive up insurance costs for everyone. “It is hard to fight them.”

For lawmakers, voting against these measures means voting against parents who are struggling to do the best for their children.

Parents tell moving stories about how behavior therapy works better than anything they’ve tried. In two states, bills got nicknames like “Steven’s Law” and “Ryan’s Law,” so voting against them was tough.

Arzu Forough of Kirkland, Wash., who is pushing a bill in her state, credits behavior therapy for teaching her son Shayan, at age 3, to make a sound to ask for a drink of water. Now 12, he is learning to converse about his favorite food and music, and to talk about his frustrations rather than throw tantrums.

Trained therapists, using principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA), created a system of rewards to teach Shayan these skills. As a preschooler, he got a piece of cheese when he said “bubba” for water. Now a therapist rewards him with tokens when he responds in conversation. He uses the tokens to “buy” privileges like going for a car ride.

Shayan’s improvements are a welcome relief to his mother, who once called for police help with her out-of-control son while she was driving.

“I pulled over to the side of the road,” she said. “I had to call the police to drive behind me so I could drive safely home.”

The Foroughs have health insurance, but it doesn’t cover Shayan’s therapy. Although they both work full time, they must live rent-free with her elderly mother to be able to afford his treatment.

Meanwhile, the Trivedi family of the Indianapolis suburb of Carmel, get 25 hours a week of behavior therapy for 11-year-old Ellie. They contribute co-pays and a deductible, totaling about $3,000. Insurance pays the rest, about $47,000 a year.

Michele Trivedi is an autism activist. She fought for years after a vaguely worded 2001 Indiana law required coverage but insurers still refused to pay for ABA. Finally in 2006, she helped convince the state’s insurance commissioner to issue a bulletin spelling out what was expected of insurers.

“It’s no longer acceptable that blatant discrimination against people with autism occur,” Trivedi said.

Autism is a range of disorders that hinder the ability to communicate and interact. Most doctors believe there is no cure. An estimated 1 in 150 American children are diagnosed with it.

Supporters say behavior therapy has decades of research behind it and can save money in the long run by keeping people out of institutions. Researchers agree, but say much remains unknown about which therapy works best for autistic kids, whether long-term gains can be claimed, and whether it works with older children.

Some states require behavior therapy coverage up to age 18 or 21. But the scientific evidence for ABA is strongest for the youngest, ages 2 to 5. Some researchers have reported on individual children with autism who no longer appeared disabled when they reached school age.

The most rigorous studies, though, show mixed results. A study published in 2000 showed that preschoolers who got intensive behavior therapy had greater gains in IQ than children who didn’t get the therapy. But there was little difference in the two group’s language development or the intensity of behavior problems. And the children most severely affected by autism showed no comparative gain.

Another study in preschoolers, published in 2005, showed little difference between an intensive ABA-based program run by therapists and less-intensive therapy from parents; children in both groups improved.

When it comes to older children, the research is sparse, said Tristram Smith of the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York, who co-authored the 2000 autism study.

“You could make a decent case for the little kids up to 6 or 7 that (insurance mandates) would be appropriate,” Smith said. “I think it would be hard to make that case for older kids.”

Another autism researcher, Laura Schreibman of the University of California at San Diego, said “fly-by-night” behavior therapists could defraud insurers with ineffective therapy.

“I would like to see insurance cover this kind of intervention because it’s documented to be effective,” she said. “But insurance companies have every right to monitor whether it’s working. If it’s been two years and there are no gains, an insurance company should be saying, ‘What are we paying for here?’”

The Council for Affordable Health Insurance, the industry lobbying arm, estimates autism mandates increase the cost of insurance by less than 1 percent by themselves, but when combined with other requirements make insurance less affordable.

Susan Pisano, a spokeswoman for America’s Health Insurance Plans, said the industry has been wary of laws ordering a specific treatment because when new scientific evidence emerges, the mandate remains frozen. And she questions whether behavior therapy is medical or educational.

The American Academy of Pediatrics includes ABA therapy in its clinical report on autism, but describes it as an “educational intervention.”

“There has been an effort to transfer the response to autism from school systems to the health care system,” Pisano said.

Nevertheless, some big companies and the U.S. military are providing ABA-based autism therapy as a benefit.

The U.S. military’s Tricare health insurance program not only covers up to $2,500 a month for the therapy, but also recently expanded the definition of who can provide it to make it more accessible. And some self-insured companies, including Microsoft and Home Depot, pay for autism behavior therapy.

Gaining insurance coverage state by state is the top lobbying priority for Autism Speaks.

“It’s the No. 1 thing we hear from parents,” said Elizabeth Emken, the group’s vice president of government relations. “What’s more difficult than knowing there’s an effective treatment for your children, but you can’t afford to offer it to them because it’s not covered by insurance?”

A new federal law requiring insurers to make coverage for mental health conditions equitable with other health coverage was tacked onto the recent financial industry bailout package.

Autism Speaks applauds the law, but says autism is not a psychological condition and that the insurance industry has refused to cover autism treatments in states with mental health parity laws on the books.

“We hope it sets the stage for the Congress and the next president to continue this effort to end discrimination in the health insurance marketplace,” Emken said. “Whichever party is elected, autism will be on the table and be a major point of discussion. There may have to be a federal mandate.”

This article is reprinted from the Associated Press and authored  By CARLA K. JOHNSON – CHICAGO (AP)

Judge’s blocking of state rules lets kids continue treatment

For now, Tina Vetter does not have to quit her job. She canceled the contractor she had hired to convert the family garage into a treatment center for her son, Murphy.

The 5-year-old, who is autistic and has Down syndrome, will continue attending Step By Step Academy of Worthington for the foreseeable future because of a federal judge’s order preventing the state from changing funding regulations for autism treatment through the federal Medicaid program.

The new rules were supposed to take effect yesterday, but U.S. District Judge James L. Graham issued a temporary restraining order late Monday blocking the state from implementing them. Graham added a preliminary injunction yesterday, meaning the state cannot make further changes without an order from the court.

“I’m just glad that somebody actually listened to us,” Vetter said. “Judge Graham absolutely understood. … It almost feels like he put a blanket over our children to protect them.”

In what may be the nation’s first decision squarely on the subject of federal funding for autism treatment, Graham ruled that there is a “reasonable chance” that Ohio’s new regulations violate Medicaid law. The matter will go to trial.

The Parents League for Effective Autism Services, a group of families of autistic children served by Step By Step and represented by Ohio Legal Rights Service, sued the Ohio Department of Mental Health and the Department of Job and Family Services over the proposed changes.

“Based on the ruling, the state will lean back on the old rules,” said Scarlett Bouder, spokeswoman for the Department of Job and Family Services, which administers the Medicaid program. The cost of continuing to provide services, she said, won’t be known until bills are submitted for reimbursement.

Bouder said about 50 families with children receiving services at Step By Step were affected by the change. State officials met with each family to outline the options: get services through the local school district, continue at Step by Step, or try a combination of the two.

The parents contend the new rules would prevent their children from obtaining necessary and effective treatment to which they are entitled under Medicaid.

State officials countered that changes are necessary to keep Ohio in compliance with federal Medicaid regulations. They also argue that Step By Step’s rates, averaging about $60,000 per year for each child who attends full time, are out of line with other providers.

But Graham said the state doesn’t consider that the services might not be available at all elsewhere, or not at the “same intensive level.”

“We do respectfully disagree with the court,” said Ted Hart, spokesman for Attorney General Nancy H. Rogers. “We think, and the federal government joined us in supporting our position, that the (new regulations) agree with the federal law.”

Michele LaMarche, Step By Step executive director, said Graham’s ruling points to a big gap in Ohio programs for dealing with a federal mandate to pay for autism services. “Judge Graham has recognized our state does have a problem,” she said.

Dispatch reporter Catherine Candisky contributed to this story.

BY ALAN JOHNSON

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

ajohnson@dispatch.com

The Columbus Dispatch : Autism ruling pleases parents.

Vanderbilt University has launched Vanderbilt Autism Clinic, a single helpline staffed by an autism expert.

In her role as Family Services Coordinator Sarah Zombek can make referrals for to autism services to families and professionals through the service.

Zombek held a similar position at Boston’s Massachusetts General Hospital in an autism clinic with a national reputation for family-centered care.

The Vanderbilt Autism Clinic is a gateway to a range of Vanderbilt clinical and research programs and resources, as well as those in the community, state and region.

It serves families, caregivers, clinicians, educators and others looking for a single, reliable source to find the help needed.

Available resources include autism-specialized diagnostic, medical, early intervention, educational, behavioral, and counseling services for children, adolescents, and adults with autism spectrum disorders..

To contact the Vanderbilt Autism Clinic, call 322-7565 (local), toll-free (877) ASD-VUMC (273-8862), or e-mail autismclinic@vanderbilt.edu.

Vanderbilt starts autism helpline - Nashville Business Journal: .

Cases of Lyme disease and autism are skyrocketing in the United States. Is there a link between the two disorders? Research spurred by non-profit foundation says “Yes.”

We know that many other environmental and genetic triggers are involved. However, Lyme disease is the fastest spreading infectious disease in the United States, with an estimated 200,000 new cases per year. Autism cases are also exploding. If Lyme disease can contribute to the onset of autism, then we are onto something big here.

Lyme disease may play a role in causing autism according to a recent study published in Medical Hypothesis, a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

“The Lyme-Autism Connection” was written by Tami Duncan and Bryan Rosner

A team of five physicians led by Robert Bransfield, M.D., analyzed the two diseases and discovered a connection based on epidemiological findings, symptom similarities, case reports, and laboratory test results.

The Lyme-Induced Autism (LIA) Foundation has paved the way for studies such as this one. Led by Tami Duncan, herself the mother of an autistic child, the LIA Foundation was established in 2006 by a group of parents who suspected the connection but recognized the need for scientific research.

Collaboration on the Medical Hypothesis study began during one of the LIA Foundation national conferences, which have attracted top physicians from around the country.

Charles Ray Jones, M.D., considered the nation’s leading pediatric Lyme specialist, was one of nine presenters at a recent LIA Foundation conference held on April 12, 2008 in Fort Lee, New Jersey. “I’ve treated over 10,000 children with Lyme disease,” Jones said during his presentation. “A good many of the children, we’ve found, have had autism-spectrum disorder.”

Warren Levin, M.D., was also present at the New Jersey conference. He described the case of “a terribly ill autistic kid…who tested positive for Lyme disease.” Subsequent to that case, Dr. Levin “started screening all autistic patients…and nine in a row tested positive for Lyme disease.”

The LIA Foundation hosted their most recent conference on June 27-29, 2008 in Indian Wells, California.

To educate the public about the Lyme-autism connection, LIA Foundation president and co-founder Tami Duncan recently co-authored a book on the topic with author Bryan Rosner. Rosner has written three books on Lyme disease.

“Lyme disease is not the only causative factor in autism,” Rosner says. “We know that many other environmental and genetic triggers are involved. However, Lyme disease is the fastest spreading infectious disease in the United States, with an estimated 200,000 new cases per year. Autism cases are also exploding. If Lyme disease can contribute to the onset of autism, then we are onto something big here.”

In their book, Duncan and Rosner describe a correlation between the geographic incidences of the two diseases. “The ten states with the highest incidence of Lyme disease are the same states with the highest incidence of autism,” Duncan says.

“Research also suggests that Lyme disease can be congenitally transferred from mother to child during pregnancy, even if the mother is unaware that she is infected,” Duncan continues. “This can account for the early onset of Lyme-induced autism in young children.”

Duncan and Rosner do not believe that the Lyme-autism connection hypothesis is new. Their book states that parents, caretakers, and researchers have long suspected the link. But the recent conferences and peer-reviewed studies are important because they attract the attention of the medical community, which can lead to life-saving research.

“New medical truths do not have significant impact until they are packaged and presented according to accepted guidelines,” Rosner says. “The connection is not new, but it is finally receiving proper attention.”

To learn more, visit the LIA Foundation website at http://www.liafoundation.org.

Rosner and Duncan’s book, “The Lyme-Autism Connection,” can be ordered from http://www.lymebook.com/lyme-autism-connection or http://www.amazon.com. The publisher is BioMed Publishing Group, South Lake Tahoe, California, (530) 541-7200.

###

Autism and Lyme Disease are Connected, Lyme-Induced Autism Study Finds.

In celebration, for every photo session Ana’s Studio does in which one of the children has special needs, she donates 50% of the session fee and 20% of the picture order to a couple of charitable foundations, one of which is our own Eddie Guardado Foundation.

If you live in Southern California and want to visit her Studio, or are a photographer and want to learn more about the SPKPA, you can reach Ana at her web site, www.anabrandt.com.

And thank you for being one of Ava’s Friends!

The Miami Herald reported Saturday the Steven A. Geller Autism Coverage Act passed by the state Legislature this week will require all private insurance groups to cover autism medical aid.

House Speaker Marco Rubio said after Friday’s 11th-hour passage that if the proposal hadn’t dealt with human suffering, he would have recommended further debate on the subject.

“If this issue is about anything else, anything else — taxes, anything — I would tell you: ‘Don’t do it. Let’s give it back and do it right and get it completely right.’ But it has to do with children and with families,” Rubio said. “I think we need to take a step forward.”

The proposal had been controversial in the Legislature as House officials wanted to add required coverage for those suffering from Down’s Syndrome and other disabilities. Members of the Florida Senate opposed expanding coverage requirements without further research and said they would only support the measure in its current form, the Herald reported.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

OKLAHOMA CITY — House Speaker Chris Benge said Thursday he does not plan to schedule a vote on legislation that would require health insurers to cover autistic children, despite pleas from parents that the bill be heard. 

Benge, R-Tulsa, said House Republican leaders did not plan to bring the bill up out of concern that the autism mandate would drive up the cost of health insurance policies and make it unaffordable for many Oklahomans. The measure received bipartisan support when it passed the Senate. 

“It’s not easy to say no to something like this,” Benge told reporters after a news conference about a task force that will study growing health care costs and uninsured Oklahomans. The parents of autistic children attended the news conference. 

“It’s very difficult. It’s very emotional,” Benge said. But an analysis of the autism mandate indicates it would increase the cost of state employee health insurance by $6 million a year, Benge said. That does not include possible cost increases imposed by private health insurers, he added. 

“When we mandate something like this, it increases the cost,” the House speaker said. “We don’t want to make health insurance unaffordable for Oklahomans.” 

Parents of autistic children characterized any cost increase as minute and vowed to step up public pressure for the House to give the bill a hearing before lawmakers adjourn at the end of May. 

“To protect the insurance industry, we’re totally ignoring the taxpayers,” said Wayne Rohde of Edmond, whose 10-year-old son, Nick Rohde, suffers from autism. The autism mandate bill originally passed by the Senate was dubbed “Nickµs Law.” 

Rohde said House GOP leaders do not understand that refusing to require health insurers to cover the diagnosis and treatment of autistic children places the burden of caring for them on taxpayers. 

“It’s totally irresponsible to put all the pressure on the taxpayers and on the school districts for care,” Rohde said. 

The Senate author of Nick’s Law, Sen. Jay Paul Gumm, D-Durant, accused Benge and House Republican leaders of “turning their back on Oklahoma’s autistic children and their families.” 

“They deserve a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives,” Gumm said. “One man cannot, nor should not, silence the voices of these families, these children and their duly elected representatives. 

“Many of us are committed to continuing this fight for thousands of Oklahoma children and their families.” 

About 20 parents of autistic children were at the state Capitol to focus attention on the insurance mandate bill. Rohde and others asserted that the measure has broad support in the Republican-controlled House and that it would pass if brought up for a vote. 

“They’re refusing to allow the people’s business to be heard,” Rohde said. Nearby, a 19-year-old autistic man, David Blose, stood near his mother, Dee Blose, with a note attached to his shirt that read: “I Need Insurance.” 

Many other states, including Texas, have passed autism coverage mandate bills, supporters said. 

Rohde and other parents said treatment and early intervention can help autistic children become productive citizens. 

“We can recover them so they can have a fulfilling life,” Rohde said. 

But Rodney Miller said treatment for his 3-year-old autistic son costs $5,000 a month and not everyone can afford the cost of treatments. 

“It’s tragic,” Miller said. “These kids can be treated.” Rohde said autistic children are born to up to 500 families each year in Oklahoma. 

“We’re not going away,” he said. “Sadly, our numbers will only increase.”

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE (CBS4) ― One in 150 kids is diagnosed with some form of autism and the numbers are growing. But the University of Miami, in conjunction with Good Hope Equestrian Training Center in South Miami-Dade, just wrapped up a research project that found children with autism improve with therapeutic horseback riding. 

The project focused on 30 kids with the neurological disorder. In just a few months, their communication skills improved dramatically. They were not as distracted; they had better motor functions and increased their activities. 

Five-year old Kiara Orta is in the program. Her mother Elena Orta says she has seen a dramatic improvement. Orta says her daughter would not socialize and just the other day at a birthday party when the clown called the children over Kiara went on her own. Orta said for most parents that’s a normal function but for Kiara is was a breakthrough. 

The University of Miami and Good Hope are starting another study. This one will include more kids and last for a longer period of time. 

For more information go to www.goodhopeequestriancenter.com 

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

For Laurie, a mother of a child with autism, all she wants to do is hear her son’s voice once more.

“My son, two years ago, was making real progress, talking,” she said choking back tears.

But then, his program in the Wilton schools fell apart, she said, the word “regression” became a constant fear and reality, and she felt her pleas to school administrators were falling on deaf ears.

“There isn’t anything more painful than watching your kid slip away,” said Mary, another Wilton mother during a group interview last week. The mothers asked that The Bulletin use their first names only because friends, family and sometimes even the children themselves are not aware that they are autistic.

For the four parents who sat down with The Bulletin, along with 21 others, who carried petitions across town recently, an adversarial, litigious relationship with the schools is not what they want. But they feel the school administration has not taken their concerns to heart, and that the system for parent involvement in special education programming — specifically for the 40 students with autism in the schools — has broken down.

With 64 signatures on a petition, the parents had hoped to force a public hearing before the Board of Education using a little-known state statute that provides for such recourse. Under the statute, “the Board of Education of any municipality, upon written petition signed by one percent of the electors of such municipality or fifty such electors, whichever is greater … shall hold a public hearing on any question specified in such petition.”

The petition was filed with Bettye Ragognetti, town clerk, on Thursday, April 24. On Wednesday morning, Ms. Ragognetti said the petition could not be certified, because the group would need to gather 110 signatures, or 1% of the total number of registered voters, which is just over 11,000. She said even if 110 signatures had been submitted, “a lot of them would be disqualified because they did not have them print their names and some of the signatures you could not read.”

Karen Birck, chair of the Board of Education, wrote in an e-mail to The Bulletin prior to Ms. Ragognetti’s decision that she was waiting to hear back from the town clerk on whether the petition had met the statutory requirements.

“The Board of Education will be commenting on this matter at our meeting on Wednesday,” May 7, she wrote.

One of the parents organizing the petition drive said Wednesday afternoon she had many more signatures, and knew a majority of those who had signed, so getting printed names should not be an issue. She said the goal is to gather at least 500 signatures.

Regardless of whether the petition had statutory power to force the hearing, she said, she hoped the Board of Education would recognize the issue was of significant interest to a large number of parents and residents, and choose to call a public hearing on its own.

Parents

Since the school-funded Autism Program Review report was issued in October 2006, parents said, little to none of the recommended changes had been put in place, and their greatest concern is the time to intervene, and possibly make drastic changes to their children’s education, programs and futures has, in many cases, come and gone.

“Time is being lost,” said Laurie. “Those children who were 4 [when the study was conducted] are now 7.”

“I think that’s why we have so many parents holding petitions, because year after year has gone by,” said Nancy, another mother. “The issue isn’t being treated with the urgency that our children deserve.”

The parents said the mechanisms put in place for parental involvement and interaction with the autism program are broken.

The Autism Task Force, which is comprised of school staff, attorneys and a group of parents, does not allow for much input, Nancy said.

“The Autism Task Force has one selected parent member who’s allowed to speak,” she said, adding the other two parents must remain silent. “I don’t know what intent there is for parental input.”

The Parent Advisory Board was dismantled in 2006, and when it was reconfigured, parents were told they could apply to serve, she said, with the schools choosing the advocates allowed on the board.

What’s more, Nancy said, members of the Board of Education do not attend meetings of the two groups, nor are the meetings recorded. So reports to the school board members come from the administration.

“I just think that there’s too many layers of filter between us and them,” said Mary.

By petitioning for a public hearing, the parents hoped to bring their concerns about the program directly to the policy makers for the schools.

“It really is about the parents wanting to build bridges with the Board of Education,” said Nancy, another mother. “It’s not productive for anybody, and that’s what exists,” she said of the often adversarial relationship between parents and the schools.

Mechanisms

Because parents believe the mechanisms for handling the special education and autism programs have failed at the schools, the petition calls for several changes to be adopted.

The petition’s first request is for “non-exclusionary” parental participation, with an open Autism Task Force made up of parents and school staff, with meetings posted publicly and held monthly. At the task force meetings, public comment periods should be allowed, the petition says, and regular reports should be supplied to the Board of Education.

The petition also asks that a “consistent” Board of Education member be tasked with attending the task force meetings as well as the Parent Advisory Board meetings. Other changes would include more input and interaction between the parents, task force and advisory board and school board when making changes to programs or considering staff hires for the autism program.

The second request is for the schools to conduct a follow-up review of the districtwide autism study that found the schools’ program to be a “systemic failure,” according to parents.

Third, parents want the SPED*NET Wilton handbook Bringing Knowledge to the Table: How to Be an Effective Advocate for Your Child made available to parents at all school sites and sent to parents.

The petition also focuses on the proposed $7.5-million expansion of the Miller-Driscoll School, which officials said is needed to expand the preschool program, which includes a program for children with special needs. The petition suggests that rather than spending the money on expansion only, the schools should consider staff development, support for children and implementing recommendations from the autism study.

The petition also asks for a review of the employment history of Dr. Judy McCarthy in the Wilton autism program.

Finally, the petition seeks the creation of a vocational program for autistic students to work with local businesses to provide marketable job training to some of the students.

A Model

Wilton’s school system is nationally known for the quality of education for typical peers, and the parents think the same should hold true for the students with special needs.

“This is something that is not going to go away,” said Nancy, noting that one out of every 150 children being born is on the autism spectrum. “Now is the time to start the process, start a conversation.”

Parents who have lived and breathed autism research since their children’s diagnosis could be a valuable resource for the schools, if they were allowed to participate more fully in developing a model program for the schools, the parents said

“We’re willing to roll up our sleeves and help the town,” said Mary.

She said a model program wouldn’t be cheap. Some of the higher outplacements for students with autism run well over $100,000 per student per year, but she said if the children aren’t reached at an early age, and don’t receive developmental programs and help that can have significant impacts on their abilities in future years, taxpayers will be picking up the tab for adults in group homes at an even higher cost.

“I think that in Wilton, that could be a fear for the Board of Education,” she said. “If they build a good program, people will move here.”

But that cost shouldn’t stop the schools and town from making such a decision, she added.

“You’re talking about children’s lives,” said Laurie. “This isn’t a bureaucratic decision.”

From the Wilton Bulletin

Information: autismhearing@aol.com

On a recent day, Dr. Johnson stepped in to sit with a 6-year-old boy left behind during lunch because of a rosy red rash on his cheeks.

The child likes to pinch his food with his fingers, so Dr. Johnson put a marshmallow cookie in his hand, guiding it to his mouth.

“Bite your food,” she tells him, arm around him, holding his hands.

Turning to a visitor, she explained that keeping her arm around him and holding his hands is called “applied behavior analysis.”

“It’s not giving him a chance to make a mistake. It’s arranging circumstances to provide reinforcement,” Dr. Johnson said.

LUDIC is the Lee University Developmental Inclusion Classroom. Applied behavior analysis has been scientifically tested and proven to work with children with autism, according to information provided by Autism Speaks, an international organization that funds research and education programs on autism.

Dr. Johnson is attending the Florida Institute of Technology through distance learning to become an ABA specialist.

She has the equivalent experience, but the formal certification may help parents with the costs of providing services for their children, she said.

“In Tennessee, there are laws that require some insurance companies to cover the costs of therapy for autistic children,” Dr. Johnson said. “But the insurance companies require a board-certified ABA analyst.”

The need to provide services and interventions for autistic children is growing.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one child in 150 is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Autism is more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes and AIDS combined, according to the CDC.

Dee Cogdill, a Polk County mother whose son attends the LUDIC school, said parents struggle to get appropriate treatment for their autistic children.

“Tennessee laws are not very good,” Ms. Cogdill said.

“The law says if insurance companies cover neurological disorders, they must cover services for autism. But insurance companies can get around it. And it only goes to age 12. Evidently, they are magically cured at 12.”

Early intervention is key to helping children become functional, the experts said. But getting a diagnosis is often difficult, they said.

And sometimes it’s a challenge to work with public schools, which are required by federal law to provide services for children with disabilities from age 3 three until they are 21. Services are expensive, and schools are strapped for money, parents said.

Ms. Cogdill said some public schools that cannot provide services for autistic children may subsidize costs of LUDIC. But some services cost extra, she said.

LUDIC supporters hope to gain more recognition and possibly raise funds to expand the program.

“It’s a 24-hour-a day-effort,” Ms. Cogdill said. “You need extra services and then you get in a battle with insurance. And there is no government funding that offers services free or at cost.

“You have to pick and choose and then you feel guilty because you are not getting kids what they need because it comes down to the almighty dollar and you can’t afford it.”

By: Beverly Carroll for the Chattanooga Times Free Press