We ignore autism — and its costs to all — at our peril

To the editor:

I read your Oct. 11 article about special education demands that need to be met in the Clark County School District ("Special ed teachers needed"). We're being given truly scary numbers about autism.

"Autistic children constitute the district's fastest growing population of special education students, growing 2,398 percent since 1996 -- from 83 autistic students then to 1,990 last year. The district's overall enrollment grew 72 percent in the same time period," James Haug reported. "The growth in the school district's autism population is just a microcosm of what many consider to be an epidemic. A 2007 study by the Centers for Disease Control reported that autism now affects one in 150 children, and one in 94 boys."

This is happening everywhere in the country, yet federal health officials haven't recognized the increases. Back in the 1970s, autism only affected one in 10,000 children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have consistently claimed that there's been no real increase in the autism rate, just "better diagnosing" by doctors. We are to believe that we've always had children like this in our schools; they were just called something besides autistic. It makes no sense in light of the incredible numbers in special education, but I see it daily in the news.

The official statistics don't come close to the reality of the autism epidemic. The rate of one in 150 was out of date when it came out in February 2007. The CDC gave us that figure based on studies of 8-year-olds done back in 2000 and 2002. Those children are now 16 and 14 years old. This can hardly be considered a true picture of the autism disaster.

In Minnesota, the recognized rate is one in every 81 kids. Others put the average rate at one in every 67 children.

No one seems to be in a hurry to do anything to stop autism. In a strange move, the government recently announced a 21-year study that would examine 100,000 kids, yet unborn, from prenatal stages to age 21 to look for clues to why kids develop autism, among other things.

All these children with autism will start entering the adult population in the coming years. Eventually, when worn-out parents will no longer care for them, it will be up to the taxpayers to take over. When this happens, no one will be able to pass the cost on to anyone else.

The findings by Michael Ganz at Harvard University make a chilling prediction of the future cost to our society. Mr. Ganz projects that it will cost about $3.2 million to take care of one autistic person over his or her lifetime. And some people believe his findings are a gross underestimate of the eventual autism price tag.

For years, as the numbers skyrocketed, officials ignored autism. Little has been done to honestly address the cause. Soon our biggest concern will be the cost of autism.

The words of Laura Bono of the National Autism Association are a grim forecast for the future: "As those children reach adulthood, the U.S. is ill-equipped to care for them. Not only do we not have enough services for adults now, the light at the end of the tunnel is a train. Frankly, we don't know what we're going to do."

Anne McElroy Dachel

CHIPPEWA FALLS, WIS.

THE WRITER IS EDITOR OF AGE OF AUTISM AND A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR THE AUTISM ACTION COALITION.