As an earlier post noted, reaction to New York mandate legislation has been mixed. From the Bedford-Katonah Patch, here is a hopeful view:
Lorey Leddy, who has a 9-year-old son with autism in the Katonah-Lewisboro schools, said she feels extremely fortunate to be in a school system with comprehensive services like speech, occupational, and behavioral therapy, but the districts are limited in what they can do for academic performance and educational achievement.
"The district just doesn't have the resources to provide the extensive social skills and behavior therapy that many autistic children need as they grow older," said Leddy. And before her son even entered the school system, they incurred steep diagnostic costs: $3,500 on a comprehensive evaluation to present to the school district.
Such expenses would be covered under the bill.
As her son grows toward adolesence, Leddy has sent him to private therapy at a cost of $1,400 per 14-week session, which supplements school therapies, to help with new social pressures he's experiencing.
"It can be tens of thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses," she said. Not every family can do it, and not every family has the benefit of the K-L district's services, she added. "With school districts cutting back on special education services this new insurance coverage will be critical.
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