Parents in Greater Sudbury are continuing their fight against the Ontario government's changes to the Ontario Autism Program (OAP) and will be rallying here in Sudbury and at Queen's Park on March 7.
For the second time in less than a month, a group of parents will be holding a rally at Sudbury MPP Jamie West's office on Barrydowne Road. Concerned parents gathered in numbers on Feb. 15, in protest of a Feb. 6 announcement by Children, Community and Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod that included giving funding for treatment directly to families instead of regional service providers, dependent on age, with up to $140,000 for a child in treatment from the ages of two to 18.
The group that is organizing Thursday's rally in Sudbury have adopted the moniker Parents United For Quality Autism Services, and will be protesting in support of a larger group of parents from across the province who will be rallying at Queen's Park Thursday afternoon.
A group of Greater Sudburians, as well as group from North Bay, will be making the trip to Toronto, led by Chantal Chartrand from Capreol, who is the mother to a three-year-old daughter with severe autism.
The rally at Queen's Park is being jointly hosted by Autism Advocacy Ontario and the Ontario Autism Coaliation.
"All we want is for our children living with autism to get a fair chance at learning life skills and getting a free public education like everyone one else. The Ontario Autism Program should be based on each child’s individual needs. They should not be discriminated by their age or their families income," said Chartrand in an email to Sudbury.com.
"I haven’t had a good nights sleep since Feb. 6 when I watched Minister of Children Community and Social Services Lisa MacLeod's announcement to the changes of the current OAP. This has devastated our family both financially and emotionally. I never thought I would be protesting at Queen’s Park so my daughter can learn basic life skills such as speaking, eating with utensils, dressing, toileting and making friends. "
The Ontario government's decision to change the funding model was done with the intention of eliminating a wait list of 23,000 children in the province. Under the new funding model, children aged 2-5 will receive up to $20,000 a year, and children 6-18 will receive up to $5,000 a year.
The severity of each individual child's autism will not be a factor in funding. The funds will be allotted based on the family’s income and any family earning more than $250,000 a year will not be eligible.
All children who are currently on the waiting list will receive new funds within 18 months.
