Autism Spectrum Condition
A report yesterday on the UK’s BBC web site announced “The economic cost of supporting someone with autism over a lifetime is much higher than previously thought, research suggests. It amounts to £1.5m in the UK and $2.4m in the US for individuals with the highest needs, say UK and US experts.”
Without wishing to sound rude to me, at least, as the parent of a child on the autistic spectrum it is not really news.
Indeed I suspect that the figure is much higher when you consider other ways we have had to change our lifestyles. For example where we live and what hours we can work.
The report from Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics also highlights how little is actually spend on autism research. In particular how little is spent on effective interventions. You can read up more here.
So what do you think? Do these figures sound reasonable? And I’d really like to kick off a conversation on how we should be spending money earmarked for autism research?
Have your say in the comment box below!
Thanks in advance.
patienttalk PaulHoward1 Well I guess I do not like putting a price tag on the cost or raising anyone. Although there are a lot of people who work very hard to support those with ASD, there are those who see the rise in the rates of people diagnosed with ASD as a fraud. I work with young adult with ASD and other developmental disabilities and it seems to me that camps are being made. No one group of parents have it harder then the next. Instead of tolerance there seems to be animosity. A case could be made,(if I take these articles at there word) that some disabilities are more expensive then others. It could also be implied that 2.4 million is a lot of money to expend on one person. I dislike this. Those who are not informed may come to the conclusion that people with ASD are a drain on limited resources. I guess that is what I worry about.
PaulHoward1 Can you tell us a bit more about the shift as you see it Paul
As a special education teacher working in a self-contained classroom with non-verbal students, reports like this make me more nervous then anything else. I have noticed over the past few years a shift of sorts in the way people perceive people with ASD. Other news organizations are elaborating on the fact that this study suggests that it costs almost 2x as much to raise a person with ASD then someone who has a intellectually disability. I am afraid that the mood will soon change and resentment begin. I can hear it in the hallways not only from students but adults as well. This is a bit troublesome.