After two years of waiting, the Saskatchewan government is delivering on a promise to provide individualized funding for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
The 2017-18 budget allocates $2.8 million to the initiative and provides parents with $4,000 per child under the age of six with autism. If you break that down, it’s around $330 a month, which some say is not nearly enough.
“As it stands right now, it is a start. We have to start somewhere as a province in providing services for these families that are affected by ASD,” Autism advocate, Katie Emde said. “But as a starting point, it’s not enough. We see the effect of families that are using therapies, paying out of pocket for these therapies, occupational therapists and speech and language pathologist and it comes at a price, a high price.”
There are also concerns with the age limit and what happens once a child reaches their sixth birthday.
“Just because they grow into adults, they still have autism,” Arden Fiala, president of Saskatchewan Families for Effective Autism Treatment Program. “Their needs will evolve and change over the years but the bottom line is they will need continued and evolving supports throughout their lifetime.”
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But it’s not just individualized funding that many say is needed. Last year, due to provincial cuts, Regina Public School Board closed the door on three preschool programs, including one designed for children with autism.
While this year’s budget sees an increase in funding for education, it’s not known if these programs will be reinstated.
“We still are initially $20 million in cuts that’s happened and I don’t feel like it’s right,” Emde said. “With the increase of population and everything else that’s happened in this province, I feel like we need to do better for our kids that are in this education system.”
Health Minister Jim Reiter said as far as the age limit and funding is concerned, we could see that change.
“This is year one and in the out-years, you’re going to see probably two-fold,” Reiter explained. “You’re going to see that dollar amount increase and you’re also going to see the age increasing.”
Still many say there are questions that are left unanswered, like when will the funding start and will it be based on income?
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