It's Now the Law

As of January 1, 2011, Massachusetts became one of 7 states that requires certain state regulated insurance plans cover the screening, diagnosis and treatment of autistic spectrum disorders starting in this new year. For more information about this autism reform law in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts you can check out this link:
http://www.autismvotes.org/site/c.frKNI3PCImE/b.4432481/k.90A7/Massachusetts.htm
It is also important to check with your company's HR department to see if your company's health insurance is subject to state laws. Some employers choose to self-insure and if that is the case these insurance plans are not subject to state law but are subject to ERISA a federal law. Visit http://www.autismvotes.org/site/c.frKNI3PCImE/b.5216011/k.1245/Selfinsured_Companies_and_Autism_Coverage.htm for more information about that.

Taking Care of the ASD Parent

Taking care of an ASD child takes up much of a parent's time. Often special needs parents neglect their own emotional and physical health to their own and their families' detriment. Read this article about taking care of yourself:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/lshumaker/detail?entry_id=79789#ixzz19Q3K3DWv

Free and Low Cost Disability Events Workshop

Sharon Riddle, the founder of SPED Child & Teen newsletter http://spedchildmass.com/newsletters, will be conducting a workshop at the library about free and low cost disability events available to special needs families. The workshop is on January 24th at 6 PM.
This event is sponsored by the CTI Family Resource Network.

Encouraging Early Literacy for Special Needs Kids

The Center for Early Literacy Learning has an online guide about building early literacy skills for special needs children. This guide includes techniques for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers.
http://www.earlyliteracylearning.org/pgparents.php

New Sensory Friendly Film Site!

The AMC at the Methuen Loop is the newest addition to local theaters offering sensory friendly films. The AMC in Methuen and Tyngsboro will be showing a sensory friendly Yogi Bear on Saturday, January 8, 2011. For more information visit http://www.amctheatres.com/SFF/ or http://www.autism-society.org/site/PageServer?pagename=sensoryfilms.

Summer Camps 2011

The weather outside might be frightful but it's not too early to think about summer camp. The SPED Child and Teen web page has a list of special needs camps from throughout New England -
http://www.spedchildmass.com/camps_2011

Combating Autism Reauthorization Act 2010

News from the Autism Speaks website:
http://blog.autismspeaks.org/2010/12/20/combating-autism-reauthorization-act-2010-introduced-senators-dodd-and-menendez-are-again-champions-for-nations-autism-community/
The reauthorization of the 2006 act would mean increased federal funding for autism research.