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Government - Discussions about Government Issues

In this topic area, discussion is about the fight to secure Government funding for your A.B.A. treatment program. It is also the place to talk about your thoughts and ideas about how to establish new Government programs specifically designed for autism treatment.

This is the place to hear input from parents who have fought for funding and won, as well as those who have fought for funding and would like to share their horror stories. There is a tendency to not share success stories once funding is secured. Please fight that tendency. By sharing our experience, we all become stronger.

FEAT BC

Hi everyone!

These are some things to think about in your dealings with government to help you to obtain support for your child's Autism Treatment Program. These are my personal opinions and do not represent those of FEAT of BC or any other organization.

Many of these observations are based on my personal experiences (and I believe it poetic justice to help every parent avoid being systematically abused by their social worker the way I was).

Good luck to everyone! (Let's all pull back the curtain on the Wizard of OZ).

Sabrina

________________________________


How To Fight for Funding for Autism Treatment and Appropriate School Placement

1. Establish a Paper Trail

Always take notes, documenting major points of all conversations with government and school officials.

This includes casual, in person conversations with social workers as well as ALL telephone conversations. All key points of discussion must be written down in your notes including the date and time of the discussion. This includes what was agreed upon, as well as what was not agreed upon.

Then the notes should be used to write a letter recapping the substance and content of the conversation. This letter must then be mailed or faxed to the person with whom you had the conversation. In addition, a copy must be kept in your file (see section on the icci game).

Why?

It is important to formalize the interaction between you and Government officials. In addition, everyone is put on notice that they must closely adhere to their responsibilities, regulations and laws., Furthermore, they must then consider the paper trail you have created. This lets everyone know that the interaction can become public and that any abuses of power and authority can be formally appealed and/or publicized.

In other words, they canit use discretion unfairly under the cloak of secrecy.

2. Submit all Requests in Writing

All your requests for your child must be submitted formally in writing with a copy included in your file and a copy, if necessary, sent to their immediate superiors.

3. Set Deadlines for Action

All formal requests for action must have a reasonable deadline set for that action. If no action or response is received by the deadline you have set (two weeks for example), then you will interpret the lack of response as a formal declination (a formal NO) of your requests.

Why Set Deadlines?

When bureaucrats do not want to do something, they will stall by ignoring you and your request. (As an aside, in the study of the bureaucracy, this is known as ithe power to do nothingi). They can string you along for years. When you have determined that the person you are interacting with is not inclined to help you or is not dealing in good faith, then you must take the initiative and formally label his/her behavior as obstructionist and de facto as a declination (a NO to your requests). This allows you to move to the next level of authority on your timetable to present your case. This takes the power to do nothing away from the bureaucrat with whom you are dealing. Simple stated, a bureaucrat who stalls and does nothing becomes irrelevant (use your invisible spray) and you move on to the next level of authority.


How to icci?

A cc. is a copy of your letter sent to someone other than the person you are writing. You put the cc. at the bottom left-hand corner of your letter followed by 2 spaces and the name of the person or people to whom you want to send a copy of the letter.

Who to icci to?

Sometimes it is best not to icci at all, especially in the early stages of the relationship (for example, your first letter to a social worker requesting assistance). This gives them the opportunity to do the right thing and does not present you as an overly combative person. When you start to run into problems, it is a good idea to send the icci to the 2 immediate superiors of the person you are having problems with. We do not recommend icciing all the way up the chain of command, since you want to give them a chance to solve the problem at the local level.

Why send a icci copy?

The reason for playing the icci game is that you want your interactions with the official to be known to his superior and possibly to other organizations so that 1) their action or inaction becomes a matter of record and 2) the individual knows he is being monitored. This helps minimize abuses of power and authority and helps encourage the official to meet their obligations and do the right thing.

What is the sequence of letters?

Find out the chain of command of the particular bureaucracy you are battling.

The Ministry of Children and Families is as follows:

TOP

Minister of Child and Families: Penny Priddy Ph.: (250)387-9699 Fax.: (250)387-9722
Deputy Minister: Bob Plecas Ph.: (250)387-2000 Fax.: (250)356-2920
Chief Operating Officer: Thea Vakil Ph.: (250)387-1745
Regional Operating Officer: Differs depending on Region Phone Inquiry BC for the number: (604) 660-2421
Area Manager: Differs depending on Area
District Supervisor
Social Worker

BOTTOM

Start at the bottom and climb. At the Regional Operating Officer (ROO) level (once you have been declined) you have to decide whether to jump up to the top, threaten and then go to the media, or both. A word of wisdom: DO NOT BLUFF. If you are not willing to go all the way, they will ismell thisi. You must be prepared to take it right up to the Minister and beyond.

Documentation from Experts:

In your arsenal to fight for your child, it is wise to get his/her pediatrician and/or psychiatrist to write a letter on your childis behalf. In addition, any other experts who know your child and are sympathetic to what you are trying to do should become involved.

When to hire a lawyer?

If money is not an issue, you can hire a lawyer when you get to the area manager level. Make sure that you have a paper trail so the lawyer has something to work with. Also, have the lawyer give F.E.A.T. of B.C. a call, and we will send him/her information that will help.

If money is an issue (as it is for most of us running autism treatment programs), you might want to hire a lawyer once you have been turned down by the Minister.

How to hire a lawyer?

The type of lawyer needed is a litigator, or trial lawyer. S/he does not need to be an expert in autism, or special needs; s/he needs to be experienced in suing governments, and enjoys being in court. Word of mouth is a good way to find a lawyer.

The FEAT BC Petition

FEAT BC has launched a petition drive directed towards the Premier of B.C., Glen Clark. The petition reads as follows:

iWe the undersigned, agree that the right to medicare, as one of the defining features of Canadian Nationhood, must include medically necessary autism treatment for all children who require it. It is fundamental that a childis access to medically necessary autism treatment be solely based on need and not individual ability to pay. We agree with sixty-three (63) B.C. Psychiatrists who believe medically necessary autism treatment must by fully funded by the Medical Services Plan, the B.C. Ministry of Health or both. We support the immediate establishment of an independent task force to find a way to provide medically necessary health care for all children with autism.i

Members of FEAT who would like copies of this petition to gain support for the cause of universally accessible, publicly funded Lovaas Autism Treatment, please contact F.E.A.T. of B.C. Many thanks to Diana Thomas for all her hard work and vision establishing this petition drive.

Informing Politicians
FEAT BC has prepared an information brief for Politicians. FEAT BC members have been requested to meet with their M.P. or M.L.A. to present the brief (if they are parents of an autistic child) and outline their individual situation. A package will be available at the FEAT BC Discussion Group meetings (or call FEAT BC at 604-534-6956 or 604-925-4401).

Speech to Rick Thorpe, M.L.A. Okanagan - Penticton, at M.L.A. Town Meeting, February 1998
(by Barbara Rodrigues)
______________________________________________________________________________________

This speech was given by Barbara Rodrigues, Mother of Jeremy. It has been added to the FEAT BC web site http://www.biogate.com/featbc
______________________________________________________________________________________


MLA TOWN MEETING

I would like to voice my concern and outrage at the current level of help or lack thereof for autistic children.

My son Jeremy will turn 4-years-old in March. He has no useful language. No self-help skills, doesn't dress/undress himself, is not toilet-trained. He has no social skills.

The present system is inadequate to deal with autistic children. The funding and services are lacking. We were on a waiting list for over a year for speech therapy and even then the current generic approach used for language delayed kids doesn't address the needs of autistic children.


They learn very differently and hence, need to be taught very differently.

The Government needs to address the fact that there is a lack of knowledgeable professionals who know how to teach and deal with autistic children.

The only one that I have met is a behavioral consultant whom we weren't even told about until Jeremy's behavior had escalated to the point where I could hardly get him dressed in the morning due to his tantrum behaviour and lashing out. He was constantly hitting himself and me in frustration and rage and had constantly been pulling the hair out in the back of his head leaving a noticeable bare spot.

By November of last year, I finally applied for respite. Although we've been approved by the panel in Victoria, there is no money available for the service. I am told that maybe in the summer but with the current state of affairs, who knows.

Due to frustration at the lack of progress my son has made, I began to research autism and treatment options. This is where I found out about Lovaas-type Applied Behavior Analysis and the great improvement it achieved for autistic children. This is where I found out about FEAT of BC. A non-profit organization made up of parents, relatives and friends who have decided to band together to work for universal access to effective autism treatment for all children diagnosed with autism and pervasive development disorders. The parents are running Lovaas-type ABA home-based programs for their autistic children.

The Lovaas-type ABA is the only scientifically backed, medically endorsed treatment available to autistic children.

But the Government excludes it from the Medical Services Plan.

Sixty-three (63) licensed B.C. psychiatrists deem it as "Medically Necessary Treatment".
Yet the B.C. government chooses to ignore them and discriminate against our autistic children.
So after extensive and exhaustive research, through books, articles, hundreds of testimonials from parents of autistic spectrum disordered children and the vast wealth of information on the internet, my husband and I have concluded that the best way to teach our son is through the ABA approach. We know first hand that the interventions supplied by the government are showing little or no progress. In fact, the only program that is showing any improvement, they are now trying to take away- but that's another fight and I will get in touch with you when that time comes.

To do this Lovaas-type ABA treatment, we have to fly in consultants from the U.S. and have them train us and the therapists that we have to hire and pay to work with our son so that he will have a chance to live as normal a life as possible.

I have had to go to the community service clubs and ask for money to help my son because the government refuses to do so.

When I asked about this treatment option which requires between 20-40 hours of therapy a week, I was told by the professionals that the FEAT people were fanatics and further more, if they (the professionals) worked with a special needs child for 4 hours a day, you'd see improvements.
Neither of this is true.

FEAT of BC seems to me to be dedicated, loving parents who want the best for their autistic children and feel it is their children's right to have proper and proven treatment paid for by the Government.

Also 4 hours a day of just any old therapy would not achieve the proven results of ABA treatment. Not all children need or require the intense treatment that autistic children so desperately need to learn in the crucial early years.

Furthermore, there is world wide research stating that early intense treatment is the best option for these children.

The current government programs of 1/2 to 1 hour a week are definitely not enough. The resources and services are underfunded and understaffed.

The needs of autistic children must be addressed by the government. Especially when early intervention is so very important. Our kids don't have the time for long waiting lists.

Before I go, I just have to tell you about one of these fanatical FEAT mothers whom I talked with last week.

She is a single mother with a 3 1/2 year-old autistic daughter and a six-year-old son. She works full time. Her husband left her two weeks after her daughter's diagnosis. She is running a home-based ABA program for her daughter. Her daughter is now saying ten words after seven months of treatment. I know this for a fact as I had the pleasure of listening to her on the phone.

To support her daughter's treatment, because the government refuses to, she rents out part of her house to two strangers. She has to share her kitchen, bathroom, living space.

On her lunch hours, she tries to do some sort of lobbying to get this treatment funded by the government, such as faxing letters to government officials, speaking at meetings.

On the night I talked with her, she had just got back with her kids from the park - cause kids need to play too. So you can imagine this woman's plate is more than full.

Yet the night she called me - she asked for no pity for herself, she complained not of her broken marriage but instead offered advice on how to keep mine together. She did not deny her daughter's autism but accepted it as her uniqueness. Yes, she was adamant about the Lovaas-type applied behavior analysis because it was working for her daughter and was giving her a chance.

That night she called to offer me support, to tell me that my son, Jeremy was lucky to have a mother like me- who won't accept the inadequacy, the uselessness, the hopelessness that was all the government funded programs had to offer my autistic son.

She listened to me rant and rave about the ignorance, the arrogance, the belligerence that I have encountered here in the Okanagan. Then she told me that she had to go- bath the kids- try and get some sleep. As you can imagine, her day is long. She told me to call her anytime that I needed someone to listen.
Before she hung up, she said she would say a prayer for my son and our family. She told me not to give up hope.

I would like to say if that's fanatical... I can only aspire to be so.

My name is Barbara Rodrigues.
My son is Jeremy.
He cannot talk.
But his voice must be heard.

Thank you.

Barbara,

What a lovely and eloquent speaker you are.
Your son is lucky to have you as his advocate.
Thanks for sharing.

DeeDee Doyle

P.S. Did you get my e-mail regarding Autism Partnership? I'm curious about what you decided to do. E-mail me privately if you get the chance ddoyle@nwdbc.com

Hi everyone! Just a thought here but there seems to be alot of us trying to secure funding for our ABA programs. For those of you who are at the Deputy Minister/Minister level, would you be interested in collectively taking a trip to Legislature to add a little more pressure? Just a thought, let me know if you are interested and perhaps we can organize something.....

Peggy Boon

ps. my e-mail address is ourhouse@direct.ca

To Peggy Boon,

My name is Dianne VillesEeche, I received your FEAT message today. Are you thinking of organizing a protest at the B.C. Legislature in Victoria?????
If you are let me know. I live in the Yukon so I won't be able to join in, but how about a Canada wide protest? All the autism groups could protest on a certain day at a certain time, so we do it simultaneously right across Canada. We could hold press conferences before and during, etc... get lot of national media attention. (Governments hate negative media attention.) Of course there would be a lot of work to organize it, but hey... What do you think?

Dianne
dvilleseche@yukon.net

Dear FEAT BC Discussion Group Members,

The family of a five-year-old child with autism filed suit Friday in Provincial Supreme Court against the Government of British Columbia.

There is an article on the story in Saturday's SUN. A copy can be downloaded at http://Fox.NSTN.Ca:80/~zacktam/FEATbc/downloads/ClassAction.pdf (an Acrobat PDF file).


Isaac
Miki's Dad

Hi Everyone,

First, youive got to read a part of what was in the SUN today:

***********************************************
iVaughn Palmer Vancouver Sun
VICTORIA - For all the controversy over the government's
$5-million promotional campaign for the Nisga's treaty,
the New Democrats insist it is paying off in a higher
level of support for their position.i

***********************************************

As many of you probably remember, this past Spring, Ted Nebbling, MLA, presented the FEAT BC 8200+ signature petition to Glen Clarke on the floor of the Legislature. The petition thousands of British Columbians signed reads as follows:

To the Premier of British Columbia: a petition to include medically necessary autism treatment in the B.C. public health care system
iThe Medical Services Plan and the Ministry of Health in British Columbia do not cover the cost of medically necessary autism treatment for childreni

We the undersigned, agree that the right to Medicare, as one of the defining features of Canadian Nationhood, must include medically necessary autism treatment for all children who require it. It is fundamental that a child's access to medically necessary autism treatment be solely based on need and not individual ability to pay. We agree with sixty-three (63) B.C. Psychiatrists who believe medically necessary autism treatment must be fully funded by the Medical Services Plan, the B.C. Ministry of Health or both. We support the immediate establishment of an independent task force to find a way to provide medically necessary health care for all children with autism.

The petition was also given by FEAT BC representatives to the Minister of Health and the Minister ifori Children & Families.

The official Government response to the petition was offered on the floor of the Legislature by Pietro Calendino, NDP MLA for Burnaby North. He said that Lovaas therapy was very effective (he actually helped someone in his riding get funding for her Lovaas program), but like most iAmericani therapies, Calendino said Lovaas treatment for children with autism was too expensive for this Government -- in these tough times of budget constraints.

In case anyone is still labouring under the misconception the problems we are all having with this Government are about money... they are not. Theyire all about misguided priorities and power.

The clipping from todayis Sun speaks about the outrage: This BC Government, with your tax dollars, in the midst of tough economic times, is spending five million dollars (yes, thatis $5,000,000!!) of your hard earned -- and obscenely taxed -- money on advertising. Those ads youire hearing on the radio are five million dollars of your money being used to sell BC Government ideology, while weire all struggling to save our kids. Those dollars... that small part of this Governmentis propaganda budget, could pay for the autism treatment program of every child in BC.

Next time a social worker or bureaucrat says they just donit have the money to pay for physician-prescribed autism treatment, tell them, iplease... donit insult my intelligencei.


***********************************************
iVaughn Palmer Vancouver Sun
VICTORIA - For all the controversy over the government's
$5-million promotional campaign for the Nisga's treaty,
the New Democrats insist it is paying off in a higher
level of support for their position.i

***********************************************

Take care,

Isaac

(Mikiis Dad)

I have found out that no matter how much you follw "THE RULES" of the Ministry of Children and Families they will always SHIT ON YOU. So instead of going through the Ministry chain of command I am recommending that you don't waste your time and go straight to the barn and deal with source of the smell.



Name Honourable Lois Boone
Title Minister for Children and Families
Organization Level EXEC.EXEC
Address Room 028
Parliament Buildings
Victoria, B.C.
Telephone 250-387-9699
Postal Code

I am looking for a copy of the memo that was sent throughout the Ministry for Children and Families re: In-home Daycare Funding and ABA. We, the families in Victoria, would like to have a copy in our lending library.
Thanks for your help.

Franca
franca@pacificcoast.net
(250) 388-6932 FX

-Do you or someone you know receive In-Home Daycare funding from the Ministry for Children and
Families? Do you or someone you know receive the $107 child care subsidy from the Ministry for
Children and Families? If you answered eyesi to either of these questions, you will want to read on.

I have recently received a copy of the final draft on the Supported Child Care (SCC) policy which is now
being prepared by our friends in Victoria and will be presented to the Minister (Lois Boone) for her
approval at the end of April. If you donit want to lose your in-own-home day care dollars and or your
subsidy I STRONGLY URGE YOU TO WRITE A LETTER TO THE MINISTER BEFORE THE END OF
APRIL.

Here are some exerpts from this draft policy: iSupported Child Care may provide supports in a childis
own home only in exceptional circumstances when a childis extra support needs would otherwise
preclude him or her from participating in a community child care setting with their peers e.g. severe
allergies, fragile immune system. If all other community alternatives have been exhausted, funding may
be provided for a time-limited period, with Manager approval.i
iThe need for in-own-home Supported Child Care service is to be clearly documented and
substantiated. The service is to be time-limited.......If the parents are not willing to work towards a more
inclusive child care arrangement, they are not considered eligible for supports.......i
iWhen the parent is paid directly through an authorization, the parent is considered to be the
employer of the caregiver, and must meet the obligations of an employer under federal and provincial
legislation. i

This is very unfair! The bottom line here is that MCF has decided they spend far too many $$is on
in-own-home daycare and are on a mission to wipe it out so they can balance their budget. Once again
this government is being driven by the ebottom linei and are doing so at the expense of our special needs
children. The eexceptional circumstancesi mentioned above are extremely limited and do not take into
consideration our children with Autism who need in-own-home daycare because they may have a
multitude of sensory issues, safety issues, and others. What about siblings, or the sometimes odd hours
that parents have to work? This policy would deny parents service based on their philosophy! And for
the few families who end up convincing their RED that they qualify, they will need to pay more dollars out
of their pockets for WCB coverage, and payroll deductions.

In addition, this ministry intends to begin income testing the $107, which means that unless your income
in unusually low, you will not qualify and be responsible for paying the entire space fee at your present
daycare or preschool. MCF will only pay for costs over and above the basic space fee if you qualify.

WE ARE BEING RAILROADED! LETiS WORK TOGETHER AND SHOW THIS GOVERNMENT ONCE
AGAIN WHAT WE ARE MADE OF! START SENDING IN THOSE LETTERS TO LOIS BOONE, AND
PLEASE DONiT FORGET TO CC THE MEDIA-IF WE HAVE MEDIA COVERAGE ON THIS, THE
GOVERNMENT IS SURE TO SIT UP AND TAKE NOTICE. And donit forget to cc your MLA and remind
them that you will be a voter in the upcoming election this fall.

If you require further information or have questions (I have copies of the above documents and the
mailing/fax list for government and media) please feel free to contact me via e-mail (ourhouse@direct.ca)
or by fax (940-1129). I will get back to you quickly.

Peggy (No relation to Lois) Boon

Just a couple messages to pass on to you from the ASBC.

Dear Members,
>
> If any of you can make this rally, more info below, I would like to urge
> you to go along -
> with your children if possible.The information I am getting from Ministry
> of Children and Families workers is dire. Services for our children are
> about to be cut dramatically, and the prospect for receiving any if you
> don't have any currently are bleaker than ever. We have seen in the past
> that active political protest is about the only thing that works to
change
> government priorties. Let's let the government know that every child in
> British Columbia deserves to stay with their family with adequate
supports
> and that every child has right to go to school - including children with
> disabilities. I am sure that there will be support for this from ordinary
> members of the NDP but it won't hurt to remind them that our children are
> also citizens of B.C.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Deborah Pugh,


Greetings,
>
> I am writing to let you know that the Burnaby Association is having a
rally
> in front of the NDP convention on June 19th to protest the underfunding
and
> cuts to Community Living. It will start at 10:30 am and while the details
> are still being worked out, the date and time are firm. The Convention is
> being held in Burnaby at the Bill Copeland Sports Center at 3676
Kensington
> Avenue.
>
> The tone of this rally will be to encourage the grassroots members to
hold
> this government accountable for straying from party principles and
> forgetting to put people first. We will endeavor to be as respectful as
> possible and still get our point across. We hope to continue the momentum
> that the previous rallies in Victoria and Vancouver have started.
>
> We would appreciate it if as many people as possible could attend to
> demonstrate to the Government that we will not just stand aside and let
> them further compromise people and their families who are, perhaps, the
> most in need. Please feel free to e-mail this message to anyone who may
be
> able to attend.
>
> For further information please contact Maggie Vilvang or Jack Styan at
> 299-7851.
>
> Thank you,
>
>
> Kevin Lusignan
> President BAMH
>

Hi Looking for advice. The Federal Government has just sent us a notice that they will NOT be allowing us a credit for our consultant's airfare or lodging??? Did anyone else have this problem and would you be willing to share any info.

please email us at joe_rodrigues@bc.sympatico.ca

Thanks in advance.

Hi.

This is for Barbara regarding Revenue Canada. They have also denied all of our cash register receipts saying these receipts do not qualify as a medical expense. VERY FRUSTRATING!

To Mrs. Quinn from Ontario...at this point in time the best province to reside in for parents with children in ABA programs would be Alberta. Simply because the Alberta Government will pay for 90% of your total cost for your program + respite money as well.

The P.E.I. Government is funding 20 hours/per week of Lovaas therapy + 3 Consultant visits a year.

Here in British Columbia the Government will not pay for any portion of an ABA program. So parents here, like in other places, have to sacrafice and except the financial hardships that come along with the joys and excitement of new tasks and skills learned.

There isn't much in terms of options in this Country but it is definitely a start.

Hope this helps. Take care and keep us posted.
Michelle Weis

Hi Everyone!

Is there a central registry for newly diagnosed children with autism?

How many families in BC with children diagnosed with autism?

Please e mail Letty at lbjames@home.com

Hi everyone,

Our ABA compatriots in Ontario are lobbying their government to apportion autism intervention funds.

We are passing on a recent post from Suzanne Wetzel asking for support from fellow parents.

Thank you.

Sabrina

______________________


From: "Wetzel, Suzanne"
Subject: letter writing campaign to pressure gov. in Ontario


I am asking for a few minutes of your time to send an e-mail to a government
official here in Ontario. Briefly, in the last election new money was
earmarked for early intervention for autism. We were led to believe ABA
would be promoted, but, as usual, agencies in place seem to be winning the
battle. One reason being given is that they have received more letters
against ABA than pro ABA. I'd like to squash this argument FAST. A bit of
pressure, both local and international, can't hurt. So, please, join us in
a letter writing campaign. Below are two "generic" letters: one for
residents outside of Ontario, one for residents of Ontario. Please cut and
paste the appropriate letter, change if desired and e-mail to the address
below. Thank you ever so much!!!!

Suzanne


______________________________
Address to mail letter to:
susan.seaby@moh.gov.on.ca


Dear Ms. Seaby:

I am writing in support of those parents residing in Ontario, who wish your
government to make money available to fund ABA programs. I find it
astonishing that, in one of the richest provinces in a country
internationally recognized for its outstanding health care system, this is
not already the case. Since ABA has been scientifically proven to lead to
potential recovery from autism, the only treatment proven to do so, I'm
puzzled that your government should be reluctant to endorse ABA. Funds have
been set aside for the treatment of autism, why not ensure that it is spend
in the most effective manner possible? Please fund ABA-just like other
provinces and States are doing.

Ignoring ABA puts the reputation of the health care system in your province
and/or country to shame.

Sincerely,
______________________________

To Letty
there may not be a central registry but if you are looking for available services agencies etc this web site link has it covered.
http://www.autism-spectrum.com/helpsource.htm

>By David Chan (Chan) on Saturday, November 27, 1999 - 05:57
>pm:
>
> Did anyone see the thing about the family in Ontario suing
>fro A.B.A. is there any more info on that case?


Hi Everyone,

There*s been a bit of commotion in Ontario over the past few days about public funding for ABA. Specifically, two separate lawsuits, in as many days, were dropped on the Ontario government . Brenda Deskin filed the first, individual suit, and a group of 12 families filed the second action. Two separate press conferences were held, each one day apart from the other. The CBC national news carried the second Ontario press conference.

The *National* video clip of the story is available at http://cbc.ca/cgi-bin/templates/view.cgi?/news/1999/11/25/autism991125
After the CBC link expires, I can e-mail a copy of the piece to anyone who needs it.

The story about *families suing in Ontario* is also on the CANOE internet news network. The CANOE story mentions British Columbia. It says, * In British Columbia, Barbara and Joe Rodrigues are fighting the province after they lost the $1,200 a month they received for their son Jeremy when the government discovered they were using Lovaas therapy

The piece is at http://www.canoe.ca/OntQueTicker/CANOE-wire.Autism-Lawsuit.html If this link expires we also have the story on file.


Isaac
(Miki*s dad)

It seems someone in the hallowed halls of Ottawa
has awoken and smelled the coffee...or at least
the beans grinding. The Canada Customs and Revenue
Agency, formerly known as Revenue Canada, have
changed the rules concerning medical expense
deductions effective for the 1999 tax year. The
entire guide "Information Concerning People with
Disabilities" can be downloaded at:
www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca/E/pub/tg/rc4064eq/rc4064-e.pdf
Here are the two sections most relevant to those
of us without a convenient 'private insurance
plan' (everything between the lines quoted
directly from the guide):
--------------------------------------------------
Allowable medical expenses

Under proposed changes, you can claim amounts paid
for the following:

Therapy provided for a person who qualifies for
the disability amount by someone who is neither
under 18 nor your spouse. This does not include
amounts paid to a medical practitioner, such as a
qualified therapist, because these amounts are
already allowable as medical expenses. The therapy
has to be prescribed and supervised by a doctor, a
psychologist (in the case of a mental disability),
or an occupational therapist (in the case of a
physical disability).

Tutoring that a medical practitioner certifies as
necessary because of a person’s learning
disability or mental impairment, by someone who is
in the business of providing such services to the
public.
-------------------------------------------------
You'll find the above on page 9 of the guide, and
the two sections above nicely cover our teams and
consultants. It's not the ball game, but certainly
an inning or two. Cheers all around!

Avery
Ariel's Dad

Many thanks to Avery for the post on Revenue Canada*s new rules regarding disabilities deduction.

If Revenue Canada changes the link to their guide, "Information Concerning People with Disabilities", or if the URL link expires, the guide is available for download on the FeatBC server at http://featbc.org/downloads/TaxChanges99.pdf


Isaac
Miki*s dad