Autism Social Issues

Social Issue Paper: Autism

Social Issue

Autism and the cut off age range for children to receive Intensive Behavioural Intervention (IBI), radically pushing away kids 5 years old and older out the waiting list to access IBI therapy. The government alleges that this is done in order to lower the waiting time for kids, 4 years old and younger, to access IBI, since this is the age window where IBI is most efficacious. Also, giving parents what it seems to be an indemnity package of “$8,000 in one-time funding” (Ministry of children and youth services, 2016), which will not help a family access the desire therapy and further marginalizing older kids from low-income families and perhaps pushing into poverty middle-income families. Also, it is
Presented reports that the Lovaas method of IBI is effective and gives long lasting positive changes. In the same article it notes that Dr. Lovaas saw a long lasting benefit to children 4 years old and younger and that the same effects would be harder to achieve in 5 and older kids. However, there is also more encouraging findings by Eikeseth, S., Smith, T., Jahr, E., & Eldevik, S. (2002) and as noted by De Rivera (2008), they found that older children also benefited from Lovaas style IBI. This is very encouraging, since the Ontario Government is discriminating older children by argumenting that the IBI style is more beneficial amongst 4 and young
However, this is not the case at the moment, because there is a massive marginalization of children who will soon be 5 years old. In the report “Poverty By Postal Code” in the message from Frances Lankin, she urges a response from government and communities to be prompt at changing high needs neighborhoods because the consequences will be grave for the present and the future, if there is no action being done. (United Way of Greater Toronto and The Canadian Council on Social Development, 2001). According to the report, poverty has been relatively increasing over a 20 year period from 1981 to 2001, the government is giving a one time $8000 to families for their “transitioning off the IBI waiting list“ basically telling them you are on your own. This is maneuvering families to further fall into poverty, since the United Way of Greater Toronto and The Canadian Council on Social Development (2001) report was done; the Ontario government is not doing their part to change the panorama of increase poverty line in Ontario. Instead is sending high needs families further into poverty by lowering the age of access to