In The Politics of Autism, I discuss the day-to-day challenges facing autistic people and their families.
In November and December of 2020, we sent a follow-up survey to a larger group of recipients. This time, we asked even more detailed questions about how they were being affected by the pandemic, where they live and their situations. This helped us understand more about who is experiencing the most hardship due to COVID-19 so that we can focus our efforts on outreach and support into those communities. Here’s what we learned: FINDING: Households of people with autism are experiencing significant food insecurity, especially minority households, compared to households with no disability.
HOUSEHOLD FOOD INSECURITY RATES BEFORE AND AFTER COVID-19
- Children with no disability 20% before 27.1% after
- Children with autism 41% before 57% after
HOUSEHOLD FOOD INSECURITY RATES, FALL 2020
- No disability 27.1%
- Person with autism, white 43.8%
- Person with autism, black non-Hispanic 65.7%
- Person with autism, Hispanic 74.5%
Source except where noted: Food Insecurity in Households of People with Autism Spectrum Disorder During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Autism Speaks, December 2020.
*Source: Karpur A, Vasudevan V, Frazier T, Shih A, Lello A. Food Insecurity in the Households of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Intellectual Disabilities in
the U.S.: Analysis of the National Survey of Children’s Health Data 2016 - 2018. Autism. (in review).
**Source: https://disabilitycompendium.org/event
