Families protest changes to autism program today
Posted Feb 15, 2019 12:34:00 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Waterloo Region residents are voicing their concerns after the Ford government recently chose to overhaul the Ontario Autism Program.
It's the latest in pushback against the Ford government's decision to change the amount of autism treatment funding that regional service providers can get.
Kitchener South – Hespeler MPP Amy Fee says she has heard from a lot of families from both sides of the spectrum.
“At the end of the day, we are really looking at those 23,000 children that are sitting on the wait list and we know that we need to get help for them. It is such a difficult file, and so hard to come up with a decision or a plan that will work for all children with autism across the province.”
Fee says she will be meeting will families at the protest and bring their stories back to the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services, Lisa MacLeod.
“That has been my role all along. It's to make sure that the families' stories are heard by the minister herself, especially families in my riding. So I'll make sure that I speak with families directly affected in my riding, as well as across Waterloo Region, who are at my office during the protest.”
Regional service providers, such as KidsAbility, have said they may have to cut down on the amount of free services available to survive the government's changes.
The Ford government says it made the changes in an effort to reduce wait times for autism treatment.
The protest is set for today from noon to 1 p.m. at 4281 King St. E (Unit 4) in Kitchener, at MPP Amy Fee's office.
