Just imagine. Imagine choosing between groceries and a month of therapy for your child with autism. Or choosing between a shipment of heating oil or therapy for your child with autism. Car repairs, cell phone bills, school clothes, Christmas presents. Or a month of therapy for your child with autism.
For many parents these impossible choices are familiar and feared. Their child, perhaps newly diagnosed with autism (and the diagnostics have become more advanced, identifying signs of autism as early as one year old), requires a suite of therapies to aid in intervention. Because when it comes to autism, the sooner the treatment, the better the opportunities for success.
But therapies are expensive, even if the families have insurance. Office visits require copays, and high-frequency, consistent visits can generate a staggering copay dollar amount.
“We only get a short window for early intervention,” says Christi Heath, Vice President for Related Services for Gersh Autism, who oversees the Ready, Set, Connect Autism Centers. “These treatments can be intensive, with some children getting 30 to 40 hours a week of therapy. We’re working to set them up for success before they go to school, so they can be more independent in the future. But it certainly is more expensive for parents to receive these services, on top of all the other services that children with autism require.”
To ease the financial burdens on parents, Crotched Mountain Foundation and CMF Kids have developed Logan’s Giving Fund for Autism. The Fund helps families of children ages 2-6 by directly paying their child’s service provider for services and treatment they would otherwise not be able to afford – services such as applied behavioral therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and music therapy.
Logan’s Giving Fund for Autism was designed to fill the gap for families in need who are struggling with covering their copay costs. The fund is named for Logan Mailloux, whose family hosts the annual Winnipesaukee Volleyball Classic, the proceeds of which support the Autism Fund. In addition, the annual Evergreens for Autism event, run by Ed Cyr, who sells Christmas trees and wreaths, generates proceeds to strengthen the fund (last year, over $40,000 was raised!).
“We’ve had parents who have been really emotional and really excited about this,” says Natalie Kitching, Billing Insurance Manager for Ready, Set, Connect. “It’s really lightened the burden to parents financially and has even made it possible to bring their children more frequently.”
“Seeing the community rally around supporting families of children with autism is so heartening,” says Melissa White, Executive Director of CMF Kids. “That is the engine of CMF Kids: partnerships, compassion, and real impact in the lives of children with autism and other complex disabilities.”