Autism Bill and the Illinois Governor

Autism affects numerous children and families, including my younger brother. This article is from the Chicago Tribune print edition by Monique Garcia and Ray Long. It immediately caught my attention. http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2008/11/autism-bill-goe.html

According to this article, the Autism bill anticipated will be passed by Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. It is an ample bill with some serious repercussions. Illinois has about 4,500 families that would qualify. Each family would be eligible for benefits up to $36,000 per year up to the age of 21. This money would cover the early interventions, like speech and behavior therapy, that have resulted in improvements in children with Autism. (I’m not sure if this would cover the families with more than one child with Autism.)

Although I think this is a bill worth consideration, the article also mentions the strain on employers, especially those who are self-insured. I did the math on the approximate cost over 21 years for the estimated 4,500 families in Illinois and the cost runs about 3.4 Trillion dollars! Illinois is already in a budget deficit as is the rest of America.

While I am all for remedying this situation, I think this bill needs more consideration. I wonder what other families with children that have disabilities think? Will people take advantage? Will the insurance companies drop people or take advantage of the bill? Let me know what you think.