Sudbury families and parents of children with autism gathered on May 28 to protest what they say is a “complete failure” of the Ford Government to help children and teens with the condition.
"We have tried to work very hard with Doug Ford and his government,” Julie Ritchie-Staddon told Sudbury.com. “But they have failed kids and teens with autism. There were 23,000 kids on the waitlist when he took office. And now there are 53,000. Not one child has received comprehensive therapy unless their parents paid for it themselves, since they took office.”
Ritchie Staddon is not just the co-founder of the Northern Ontario Autism Alliance and a member of the Ontario Autism Coalition, but a mother of two autistic children, Charles, 5, and June, 7.
The rally in Sudbury was part of a provincewide effort to raise awareness of the lack of needs-based autism funding and services, as well as what care looks like at present. The event’s hashtag says it all: #50kisnotOK.
Ritchie-Stadden said she believes the issues began a few months after the Ford Government took office in 2018, and made changes to the existing care framework.
“They didn't host consultations with experts; they met with a few handpicked families, and then they destroyed the regional system that we had.”
Rather than a needs based system, it was a “cash-based system” said Ritchie-Staddon. “Before, if your child needed 30 hours a week, they would get it. If they needed 10 hours a week of therapy they would get it. It was all based on the needs of the child.” Then, she said, the government changed it to a set amount of money based on the age of the child, not their therapy requirements.
It’s an issue that France Gélinas said she has dealt with frequently in her time as MPP for Nickel Belt. (Gélinas is now a candidate for her seat in the provincial election.)
"The consequences throughout my riding were horrible,” she told Sudbury.com at the protest. “And I have hundreds of families right now waiting for care for their kids, some of them two years, three years, the longest five years."
Gélinas said the initial cash-based plan was not received well, and after protest, the Ford government did retract that aspect.
“None of it made any sense, and the pushback was horrendous, too. So they say okay, we'll study some more. And here we are four years later and we are no further ahead than we were the day they started.”
Gelinas has been a longtime critic of the sitting government’s handling of the autism funding, especially with the number of Northern families receiving care.
Though the Ford government did provide a more needs-based approach to care after an announcement in February of 2021, some parents still felt that was inadequate.
Not only that, said Gélinas, but the struggle for children in more remote areas of Northern Ontario face even more difficult hurdles in their care as the lack of services now means travel to urban centres for northern families.
Ritchie-Staddon said the lack of needs-based care funding has resulted in parents making desperate choices to help their children. She knows parents who have had to remortgage their homes, and those who have had no options at all.
“It can mean parents selling their houses and moving back in with their parents to pay for their children,” she said. “It also could mean things like my husband and I cashing out our RRSPs to pay for therapy for our children. And that's not something that people should be experiencing in Ontario. If I told a parent they had to wait an extra four years to get their child into school, for instance, because the government didn't want to fund it, people would be outraged. And that's what we're experiencing."
Kim Paris knows what Ritchie-Staddon means. The two met through their children and have banded together for support.
Her son Rowan is three and Caleb is six. Caleb was diagnosed in 2020, Rowan in 2021. “And they've both been on the waitlist since their diagnosis,” said Paris. She told Sudbury.com her family was protesting to raise awareness, because she has seen the difference in her children. She has managed to pay for therapy, but is angered that it is not accessible for everyone.
“So many kids are waiting for this, and waiting is detrimental to their development.” She said that since her children have been in therapy, the difference is almost “night and day.”
“It's allowed them to learn language and basic life skills and to socialize. Even to just go to school and learn,” she said. “Our kids have to work a lot harder, but when we put in the work, I see the difference.”
For Ritchie-Staddon, the answer comes with marking an ‘X” in a box on June 2.
“I think No. 1, if people just vote,” she said. “Look at the platform, see what the parties are doing, and choose whatever will work for them and their family.
She also said she wants people to think of all the autistic children who need more care and that to her, “the Conservative government is not able to make decisions for my children anymore”.
“Children like June and Charles have been waiting. My daughter has been waiting since 2017 for funded therapy from the province. Please think of our experience and vote in a way that will help them.”
Jenny Lamothe is a reporter with Sudbury.com. She covers the diverse communities of Sudbury, especially the vulnerable or marginalized, including the Black, Indigenous, newcomer and Francophone communities, as well as 2SLGBTQ+ and issues of the downtown core.
