Lydia Wayman autisticspeaks.wordpress.com I went to a Town Hall meeting today regarding the cuts to the Pennysylvania Department of Public Welfare budget, which means cuts to Medicaid. And so many people were saying that the results of cuts to Medicaid services for kids with autism (because probably 75% or more of the people there appeared to be parents of kids with autism, along with clinicians who work with people on the spectrum, and autistics themselves, like me) would result in the necessity of long-term institutionalization. In essence, sure, you’ll save the money now when we lose services because we can’t afford the copays, but it’s going to come back to bite you when we need to be institutionalized one day. I read my piece in front of all those people and made my point, which was basically the same as what I just described, too. They took my letter to…
Tag: group home
Lindsey Nebeker is one of our community’s most visible activists, speaking out on topics ranging from autism and dating in Glamour magazine, to the need for more safety and support measures for individuals with autism at a recent Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee meeting. Lindsey was diagnosed with autism at the age of two, and began to speak around age four. She grew up in Tokyo, Japan with her younger brother James, who shares the same diagnosis but faces more challenges. She recently spoke with TPGA about her experience growing up as one of two siblings with autism. Tell us a little bit about yourself. How old are you, where do you invest your greatest energies, and when did you first receive your autism diagnosis? I am a pianist/songwriter, photographer, public speaker, and advocate currently residing in the Washington, DC metro area. As a woman in my late twenties, I have…
Transitioning to a group home Laura Shumaker www.laurashumaker.com My son 22 year old son Matthew and I were cruising our neighborhood for garage sales early one November morning, and we weren’t having a lot of luck. We needed to find furniture for the apartment that he would be moving into the following weekend. Matthew has autism, and would be part of a Supported Living arrangement that we had designed with the help of our regional department of developmental services and Camphill Communities in Soquel, California. “Supported Living Services (SLS) consist of a broad range of services to adults with developmental disabilities,” said Mary, who had been Matthew’s social worker since middle school. “With a supported living program,” Mary said, “Matthew will be able to exercise meaningful choice and control in his life, but with enough support to help him achieve his long term goals.” “How long term is “long term?”…