Barney Frank's response to requested support of the ATAA 2009

June 6, 4:51 PMSpecial Needs Kids ExaminerHeather Sedlock

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Barney Frank (D-MA)

Recently, I wrote a couple of articles  asking for support of the recently filed Autism Treatment Acceleration Act (ATAA) 2009. I requested that readers contact their House Representatives and ask for their support of this bill. My father took up my quest and contacted Barney Frank (D-MA),  the 4th District Representative. Barney Frank provided to my father a well-thought out, friendly, supportive response. However, he did not mention the ATAA but instead referred to previous support for Autism Research.

In his emailed response he stated:

“I was a cosponsor and strong supporter of the Combating Autism Act (CAA), which as you know was passed by Congress and signed into law in 2006.  I strongly agree with you that the activities authorized by this law need to be fully funded, and I have worked with my colleagues to provide the maximum funding under the current economic conditions.”

This is a good sign for future support of Autism research. However, what concerns me most at this time is not just funding for research, but coverage for treatment. As researchers search for a cause and a cure, children are suffering now in silence. Parents are suffering. Siblings are suffering. These children deserve to have the tools given to them now to have a better quality of life. Parents deserve the support that therapeutic services provide. Demanding that insurance companies cover such treatments is the only way to provide this much needed service. We do need research; that’s a given. But in the meantime, we need treatment services for these children and their families.

Mr. Frank also said in his response:

“I fully supported the Democratic leadership's request of $15 million in autism research to be included in last year’s Defense Appropriations bill. However, given the current financial restraints the government now faces, in large part because of the Bush Administration's ill advised economic policies, we were only able to secure $8 million.  You can be assured that I will continue to support efforts to direct as much federal funding as possible towards this vital research.”

Again, I’m glad to know that $8 million dollars is going towards research. This is a large amount of money, more than ½ of what was requested. It will do a lot of good. But to further my point, what good does it do researchers to research if nothing is done with the results of said research? There are valuable conclusions research has taught us that can be used in the treatment of children. However, it does no good if these children cannot receive treatment because insurance companies do not cover the costs.

The cost of treatment for the children in Arkansas currently diagnosed with Autism is expected to reach $7 million. This could be cut in half by enacting this bill as law! This can be done by paying just a $1.48 more per month. For less than a cup of coffee, as the now clichéd remark goes, you could change the life a child affected by Autism.  As Mr. Frank pointed out above, these are tough economic times; we need to support measures that will help cut health care costs to taxpayers. This bill is just good economic sense.

Also we have learned from Mr. Frank’s response, it does not appear that many legislators know about the bill, what it is for, and why it is needed. Again I urge you to contact your local and national representatives and ask for his or her support. Use the URL to my article to help you explain why it’s different than research funding and why it is so important.