Ontario is putting more than $ 62 million in its autism budget this year to make the services more available as the province works to support the delayed revision of the program.
The government is expected to announce this afternoon that the money will be used for initiatives such as grants for service providers to hire new clinical staff, increase working hours for existing staff, and travel children to rural or remote communities.
Families and providers have said that capacity has been reduced in the past two years – and less service can be offered even as the waiting list grows.
The government attempted to launch a new autism program in February 2019, but discontinued it after it sparked outrage among parents for limiting funding to amounts that families felt were under-funded, and more by age than directed as needed.
After that plan failed, the government promised to launch a new autism services program in April 2020, but announced in late 2019 that it would instead be phased in over two years.
This spring, the government began enrolling children in the core services, which are now about 470.
Minister for Children, Community and Social Services Merrilee Fullerton said the capacity announcement is an example of how the government is working to transform the program.
“The expansion of the workforce will continue to support the delivery of core clinical services under the new needs-based program and ensure that families can work with a doctor of their choice to develop a treatment plan based on their child’s individual needs and goals,” she said in a statement.
The announcement is part of the $ 600 million annual budget for the program, which was doubled following the 2019 controversy.
It also includes more training for service providers, including on indigenous cultural literacy and mental health. It will also include funding for pilot projects to create more service in the north.
The government said it is pushing its plan to regulate applied behavior analysis as a standalone profession, adding speech and occupational therapists to the list of autism program providers.
