Autism: Is there an epidemic? Can we avoid the economic tsunami?
The Center for Disease Control reports a 2016 autism rate of 1 in 36 American children aged 3-17 years olden 1 in 28 boys
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Things to consider:
Something new and terrible is happening to a generation of American children.
- Autism has largely been a problem of American children, imposing an overwhelming burden on American schools for the last three decades
- There are less than 200,000 adults with autism today. At the current rate of growth, we will see an adult population of 5 million in 25 years
- If the epidemic doesn’t stop a tsunami of disabled adults will soon overwhelm the infrastructure available to serve them.
- Today, most individuals with autism live with their parents. As this disabled population enters adulthood, their parents will die leaving them no natural caregiver.
- The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that the lifetime cost of caring for an individual with autism ranges from $1.4 to $2.4 million (for those with intellectual disability as well.)
- An autism epidemic this magnitude would make spending at these levels unsustainable.
- We are not remotely prepared for the burden of this new population.
Maybe it is time to think outside the box! Click on the link below to see a short video that may be in part a solution in providing improved quality of life