Coalition Building in Missouri

Writes Bill Bolster, Autism Speaks Missouri Chapter Advocacy Chair:

Our coalition remained strong and resilient as we gathered again in the summer of 2009 to modify bill that had been introduced in the previous legislative session. With another year of experience in our pockets, along with bills filed in both chambers that had strong support from Republicans and Democrats, as well as strong medical, legal and moral arguments that lent support to each word of the bills, we went to work as a community to prepare for the 2010 session. From all corners of the state, we worked together on weekly phone calls, attended hearings as a group and pushed for passage as one community voice.

With the amount of awareness that had been raised during the last two years in the legislature and with the strong vocal support of the governor, we thought we might see passage of our bill as early as the first half of the 2010 legislative session. When this deadline passed, our coalition continued to fight for passage. On the third to last day of the session we finally watched our bill pass the legislature. While passage of the bill brings insurance coverage to the families that need it for diagnosing and treating autism, Missouri autism community benefited from this experience in a way that is even more significant. We have formed a coalition of families and organizations that have learned how to work together to bring about an answer to a community problem. With passage of autism insurance reform behind us, we are a community of friends and colleagues who can now work together in the future to achieve other objectives that will be of importance to families and people with autism.