When I worked for a politician a couple of years back I advocated for many parents whose autistic children were on a waitlist for government subsidized ABA treatment. Some were on the list for 2 or 3 years. When the children reached the age of 6 they were no longer eligible for the treatment and were removed from the list and essentially abandoned by the government. These cases tormented me. With treatment costing $60,000 per year parents were (and still are) forced sell their houses and cash in all their assets to pay for treatment for their children's medical condition. This certainly would not happen if the child had cancer or a heart condition. One father I knew went to the beach each weekend with a bucket and was given permission to solicit change from people for his son's treatment. This story broke my heart.
In opposition Dalton McGuinty promised to end the Conservative government's practice of cutting off funding for treatment for autistic children once they reach the age of 6. But once in office, he broke the promise.
A group of parents went to court and won a ruling last year that the age barrier violated the Charter of Rights. The McGuinty government appealed, and in a ruling last week, the Ontario Court of Appeal sided with the government.
Shame on all of them!
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