JEFFERSON CITY – Gov. Jay Nixon, who has long been a champion for children with autism, today said that World Autism Awareness Day (April 2) and the proclamation of April as Autism Awareness Month in Missouri are reminders that thousands of Missouri families that include children with autism need our ongoing support. While great strides have been made in recent years, the Governor said, the State of Missouri needs to continue making more resources available to help those families.
“Here in Missouri, we believe that all children – including those with autism – deserve the opportunity to live up to their God-given potential,” Gov. Nixon said. “From passing landmark autism insurance legislation to expanding access to in-home services through the Partnership for Hope, we have made Missouri a nationally-recognized leader in caring for our most vulnerable citizens. We must continue efforts such as these so that those living with autism have access to the most effective and affordable care and services.”
Gov. Nixon’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget recommendations included historic investments in services for Missourians with developmental disabilities, including $5 million to expand the Thompson Center for Autism, in Columbia. The expansion would allow the Thompson Center to accommodate an additional 2,000 visits per year by expanding dedicated research and training space, and train 100 more providers over the next five years to alleviate the shortage of autism services in Missouri.
The Governor’s proposed budget also included $1 million to help launch an autism clinic at Truman State University and $500,000 to expand services at the Mercy Kids Autism Center in St. Louis and St. Charles counties.
In 2010, Gov. Nixon spearheaded the bipartisan effort to pass the law mandating the coverage of autism diagnosis and treatment. For the first time, insurance companies were required to cover one of the most highly effective types of therapy, Applied Behavioral Analysis, or ABA. While effective, the cost of ABA can exceed tens of thousands of dollars a year, making insurance coverage necessary for most families.
