October 14, 2009
Missouri Lawmakers Hear Testimony about Autism, Insurance

By Julius Karash

Julius Karash

Julius Karash

Health insurance coverage surfaced as a key issue at a hearing Tuesday by the Missouri House of Representatives Interim Committee on Autism Spectrum Disorders. The 3-hour hearing was held at UMKC School of Medicine.

Much of the testimony, by parents and experts in the field, focused on lack of insurance coverage for therapies such as Applied Behavior Analysis – an effective, evidence-based treatment. ABA treatments are expensive, costing tens of thousands of dollars a year. But the improvements derived from these treatments can save more than $2 million in care and special services over the life of a person with autism.

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October 4, 2009
KC Rally Presses Issue of Autism Coverage

By Julius Karash

Sen. Eric Schmitt

Sen. Eric Schmitt


Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt of Glendale said Saturday that he will press on with the fight to obtain health insurance coverage for autism treatments.

“What we’re fighting for with these therapies is the difference between whether or not a dad can take his son to a baseball game, or the difference between whether or not that child can have meaningful friendships with other kids,” Schmitt, the father of a five-year-old boy with autism, said at an autism insurance reform rally at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Nursing.
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September 13, 2009
Deconstructing the Meltdown

meltdown

By Toni Lapp
Behavior analyst Baker Wright vividly recalls the first time he was called in to consult on a child with Asperger’s syndrome. A school had referred a sixth-grader for behavioral services because of his disruptive behaviors – ranging from refusal to follow directions to crying and yelling in class.

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ASK AN AUTISM SPECTRUM SPECIALIST

Games to Enhance Turn-Taking, Sportsmanship, Social Skills

By Jeanne Holverstott, M.S.

Q. I read that when Temple Grandin was a young girl, her mother hired a nanny to play turn-taking games with her to improve social skills. What sort of games do you recommend? Are there any that you don’t recommend?

A. After every holiday meal, my family would gather around the dining room table with a game purposefully selected by my mother for this occasion. I remember Taboo, Scattergories, Trivial Pursuit, Outburst. No matter the age of the player, the expectations were the same: follow the rules, win with humility, lose with grace, do your best, and never, ever complain. Games make up the fabric of a childhood and, perhaps, a lifetime, and appropriate game play opens doors to respect, friendship, and fun.

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DEVELOPING TALENTS

Intervene, Intervene, Intervene

By Kate Duffy

A while back, Toni, the SpectrumConnection editor, asked me to write about how far parents should go to help their teens on the spectrum land a job. Since then, several of our Hot Topics parents have shared their kids’ job search stories with me, and I realized there was no easy answer to her question. For the most part, though, their stories revolved around the kids’ inability to accurately read situations, to remember instructions and to multitask to make a deadline. Looking at that list, it sounds like business as usual on the job for most of us — which is why it is so very important that our kids start learning about the world of work as soon as they can.

That’s why the short answer to Toni’s question is this: do what you need to do.

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