On September 30th 2011, Senator Steinberg held a press event to rally the supporters of SB 946, landmark legislation that would compel health insurance providers to cover Behavioral Intervention Therapy for patients with autism spectrum disorders. The rally took place at the Ed Roberts Campus in Berkeley California, and with it's media attention was no doubt an influence on Governor Brown's descision to sign SB 946 into law. Click here to see a video of this event.
The day started with a musical introduction from The Dream Seekers, a three piece combo composed of band members with autism. They had us tapping our toes.
Rocio Smith of Area Board 5 on Developmental Disabilities, fired up the crowd and helped everyone to appreciate the importance of our mission. "The Bay Area has a reputation for being an activist community, We are the cradle for the Independent Living Movement. The Center for Independent Living, here in Berkeley, was the first of what would become a worldwide movement. So it is no coincidence that most of the parents leading the fight to make insurance coverage for autism services, a reality, come from the Bay Area."
Marty Omoto of the California Disabilities Community Action Network, holds up a picture of his sister
reminding us all of the sprit that moved all of us to be there, an understanding that we all have the right to inclusion, respect and dignity.
Feda Almaliti of Autism Health Advocates told the the story of the nightmare of trying to get her insurance company to cover behavioral intervention treatment for her son. But she glowed as she spoke of the joy of seeing the improvement in his condition and the change in the quality of life, not only for her son but for her entire family. "It's difficult enough raising a child with autism, parents shouldn't have to struggle this hard, just to get coverage that we pay for every month."
Dr. Karen Fessle (not pictured) of the Autism Health Insurance Project spoke from the perspective of a parent with a teenage son who has benefited remarkably from early intervention therapy. " He is learning to drive. He has friends. He volunteers at a pre-school. We are looking at colleges. Is he still on the autism spectrum? Most definitely. Early Intervention therapy may or may not "cure" our children, but what it will do, is maximize their potential. It will allow them to become the best that they can be. It will increase the chances that our kids can (grow up to) hold jobs, become productive citizens and lead full and independent lives. Money spent on these special children today will save us all money, tomorrow. Governor Brown, please sign SB 946 into law."
Dr. Albert Wang from Friends of Children with Special Needs, addresses the crowd in English and in Chinese about the benefits of Early Intervention Therapy.
Former Area Board member, Cecilia Corral, gave a cornice explanation of SB 946 and told the very moving story of her experience as the parent of a child with autism, for our Spanish speaking attendees.
Kristin Jacobson- Alliance of California autism organizations and AUTISM SPEAKS - "The school aged population in the Bay Area has more than quadrupled over the last decade. Despite flat school enrollment, more than 1 in 100 students have an autism spectrum disorder, compared to less than 3 in 1000, a decade ago. Of the Bay Area population that is treated by the Regional Centers, 77% is under the age of twentytwo.There is a tsunami coming as these individuals age, and our community will be unable to cope if we do not get treatment to the younger and older generation immediately.
The crowd remained engaged and attentive, as speaker after speaker took the stage.
Senate Majority Leader, Ellen Corbett, of the 10th Senate District and the East Bay Regional Task force- "We all know that early treatment and intervention can mean everything for a child with autism. It can ensure successful participation in a regular classroom in a neighborhood school, instead of a segregated, expensive classroom in some school further away. It can mean families can raise their children to be full functioning and contributing adults, instead of adults who will require public support, all of their lives. Early and consistent treatment and therapy make sense for for children with autism or a pervasive developmental disorder. It makes sense for families and it also makes sense for our state."
Senator Mark Leno, Chair of the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, commented on the fiscal impact of SB 946 on the State of California.- "27 other states across the country have enacted similar legislation and they have found that it has increased monthly insurance premiums by about a quarter. The California Health Benefits Review Program, a non-partisan, independent, academic group, has researched the fiscal impact of SB 946 and determined that enacting this legislation might increase healthcare premiums by about .15 of a percent. This, at a time when health insurers are raising premiums by 10, 20, 30, 40 percent, every year, for their own profit. SB 946 will save consumers about 140 million dollars annually and it will also benefit California's General Fund by 10's of millions of dollars, because it is the State General Fund that pays for the regional center's costs and school costs, because currently the health insurers won't pay for them. We the people, through our legislative process, have the ability in our hands to change that and make it required that health insurers pay their fair share." Senator Leno then went on to thank Governor Brown for signing SB 48 (Leno), which will require that the role and contributions of the disability community be included in our grade school curriculum.
California State Senate, President Pro Temp, Darrell Steinberg recalled the inspiration he got from attending
U.C. Berkeley and living in the dorms along with students from The Ed Roberts Center for Independent Living.- "It led me to believe in ways that I will always believe, that the flip side of disability is ability, because what I saw were people, who despite their severe challenges, were normal people. People who just wanted to get an education and who were upset when their favorite team lost a big game on Sunday, and who had the same worries and joys as anybody else."
"That experience led me to get involved with disability activism at U.C. Davis, it lead to work on Mental Health (policy) and Proposition 63 and now we find ourselves here and it's a continuum and it all starts with inspiration. That inspiration started here at U.C. Berkeley with Ed Roberts and The Center for Independent Living, over 3 decades ago."
He went on to say that he and Senator Corbett and Senator Leno are vessels, hired by the people, to do their best by the people. He went on to explain that without the activism of advocates, Regional Centers, and other concerned people throughout the State of California, this issue would not have the attention it deserves and for that. he offered his thanks.