April 22nd, 2008

Members of the Lehigh Valley chapter of the Autism Society of America gathered at Lehigh Valley Hospital Saturday for an overview on the “state of research, funding and treatment in Pennsylvania,” reports the Allentown Morning Call.

Speaker of the House Dennis O’Brien, R-Philadelphia, who has been a vocal advocate for those with autism spectrum disorders, spoke to the crowd. ”We need a total change in the way we develop policy to do the right thing. Early intervention will save money by maximizing achievement later in life,” he said.

One parent in attendance spoke of one of her children, who has both autism and leukemia – the cancer diagnosis came with a binder packed full of information. ”But there’s no blue binder for autism,” she said Saturday. Instead she counts on the Autism Society to be the safety net where, by networking with the other parents in the group, she can uncover useful tidbits such as how to get free diapers for children who are not toilet trained by a certain age.