Auto Insurance Quotes ~ Autism Day Celebrated With Walk, Signing : WHEELING - Autism Day was celebrated Saturday at Wheeling Jesuit University with an Autism Walk and the ceremonial signing of the Autism Insurance Bill by Acting Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin.
More than 200 walkers made five laps around the indoor track of the Alma Grace McDonough Center to bring awareness to autism. Following the walk, Tomblin addressed the walkers and used numerous pens to sign the document which he officially signed into law on Friday.
Kathy Shapell, executive director of the Augusta Levy Learning Center in Wheeling, which treats autistic children, said, "It's a great day in West Virginia. This will have a big impact.
"This (insurance bill) will help thousands of children get the help they need," she added.
In addition, she said 90 percent of children with autism who receive early intervention and treatment can be helped and 50 percent of those children will be able to become indistinguishable from their peers and not need services again.
The Applied Behavior Analysis and treatment, offered at the school costs $36,000 per year per child, or about $3,000 per month.
The Autism Bill will require insurance companies to pay $30,000 of that. Shapell said in the long run it will actually save the state money because life-time care will not be necessary for many.
Gretchen Hercules of McMechen, the mother of a 5-year-old autistic son, said passage of the bill "is a big burden off your shoulders. It was a big worry about money."
Tamra Aman of Huntington has twin 4-year-old autistic sons. "I came up here for the Augusta Levy Center. His signing this bill is a wonderful thing," she said. "We had to give up our home. Had this passed a year ago we could have kept it.
"It amounts to about 47 cents per month per household in the state," she continued. "With this, children are going to be able to get the much needed therapies. Before it was the haves and have-nots. I don't want other people to have to give up their homes."
Prior to the ceremonial signing, Tomblin read a proclamation which designated Saturday as Autism Day and April as Autism Month in West Virginia. He noted autism is the third most common developmental disorder.
When signing the bill he said, "This will allow families to get the important therapy they need to help their child connect and communicate with others."
To date, 23 other states have passed similar legislation and several others are planning to introduce it.
