What We Do

Our mission is to enforce and expand the legal rights and protection of individuals with autism, providing support for them and their families, as well as the service providers and attorneys who assist them.

HEALTHCARE

Continue to fight for coverage of evidence-based, medically necessary services

  • Remove age and spending caps

  • Remove exclusions for small group and individual plans

  • Ensure accessible alternative coverage for individuals covered via self-funded plans

  • Ensure access to services is not inappropriately withheld (e.g. litigate mental health parity law violations)

Our Areas of Focus

EDUCATION

Ensure that access to medically necessary services are not prohibited due to the school setting

  • Require schools to allow services (and providers) into the school setting

  • Require health insurance payors to allow school as a setting for services

  • Clarify expectation of schools under IDEA and ADA standards through case law (i.e. litigate IDEA and ADA violations)

HOUSING

Add detail and clarity into “settings rule” at federal and/or state levels to remove barrier for projects hoping to serve individuals covered by Medicaid

  • Ensure reimbursement levels are sufficient to enable financially attractive projects that serve individuals across the spectrum

  • Litigate when underfunding results in discrimination (e.g. excluding individuals with severe challenging behaviors)

How We Work to Address These Issues

  • Assemble teams of legal experts in each area to strategize and develop our legal theory and approach

  • Partner with national law firms on a pro bono basis to conduct research

  • Work with those who are impacted to better understand the issues and solutions to build coalitions

  • …