Essay on Autism Legislation
Autism Legislation for Parental Awareness.
01/21/2013
College Composition II
Autism is defined as a mental condition, present from early childhood, characterized by great difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people and in using language and abstract concepts (Miriam–Webster 2012). However, the Cal Fullerton graduate Robert Moran (2012) summed it up best when he stated “I have autism. It is not a disorder or a disease. Ignorance is a disorder and a disease. It needs to be eradicated.” (para 1.). Since the diagnosis of autism has been on the rise since the 1980’s and the current prevalence is 1 in 88 (U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). The time for advanced legislation to inform parents about this condition is now. Current laws that are on the books dealing with autism are geared towards discrimination. A bill is needed that mandates autism screenings during annual pediatric visits and acts as an addendum to the current Affordable Health Care Act. There are some distinct reasons why this necessary and beneficial.
First, this condition is more prevalent than other childhood afflictions. As stated above the current birth rate of Autism is 1 in 88. When this statistic is juxtaposed to the conditions that are screened on a regular basis such as childhood leukemia which has a rate of 1 in 10,000 or childhood diabetes which has a rate of 1 in 400 (U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). There are noticeable variances in the amount of documented cases of autism versus the amount of screening and prescreening that currently takes place. For example, there are no pre-screenings for Autism that are currently employed by pediatricians (American Medical Association 2012).
Secondly, the main reason the detection of the condition at a younger age is important is that early intervention is the key to helping children shake off the negative life changing affects of autism. There is
01/21/2013
College Composition II
Autism is defined as a mental condition, present from early childhood, characterized by great difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people and in using language and abstract concepts (Miriam–Webster 2012). However, the Cal Fullerton graduate Robert Moran (2012) summed it up best when he stated “I have autism. It is not a disorder or a disease. Ignorance is a disorder and a disease. It needs to be eradicated.” (para 1.). Since the diagnosis of autism has been on the rise since the 1980’s and the current prevalence is 1 in 88 (U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). The time for advanced legislation to inform parents about this condition is now. Current laws that are on the books dealing with autism are geared towards discrimination. A bill is needed that mandates autism screenings during annual pediatric visits and acts as an addendum to the current Affordable Health Care Act. There are some distinct reasons why this necessary and beneficial.
First, this condition is more prevalent than other childhood afflictions. As stated above the current birth rate of Autism is 1 in 88. When this statistic is juxtaposed to the conditions that are screened on a regular basis such as childhood leukemia which has a rate of 1 in 10,000 or childhood diabetes which has a rate of 1 in 400 (U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention 2012). There are noticeable variances in the amount of documented cases of autism versus the amount of screening and prescreening that currently takes place. For example, there are no pre-screenings for Autism that are currently employed by pediatricians (American Medical Association 2012).
Secondly, the main reason the detection of the condition at a younger age is important is that early intervention is the key to helping children shake off the negative life changing affects of autism. There is
References: ABC News. (2013, Jan 1). Grover Nordquist Hears the Deal Will Pass is Glad about it. Retrieved January 18, 2011, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/autism Clinical outcomes of an early intervention program for preschool children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in a community group setting Valsamma Eapen, Amelia Walter BMC Pediatrics 2013, 13:3 (7 January 2013). Huffington Post. (2012). Report Linking Vaccine to Autism Was Fraudulent, Says British Medical Journal Retrieved January 18, 2011, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stimming R U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Childhood Leukemia (Data & Statistics) [Brochure]