Vt. needs to serve people with autism

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Vt. needs to serve people with autism
The state of Vermont needs to do a better job of serving kids/adults with autism spectrum disorders and disabilities that are not as visible. It is unacceptable that people who are on the higher functioning side of the autism spectrum have to struggle just to get funding for supportive housing (i.e. developmental homes, supportive apartment living), transportation, job coaching, counseling, post-secondary training, and respite for adults. We have a lot of work to do in terms of improving developmental disability services and the process for getting them for people on the autism spectrum. There are many parents out there including mine that want to see services for those that desperately need them. Every client needs to be present when they do funding committees for adult developmental services.-view article

Speaking as resident of Vt. & dx'd adult, agree with you there. Am fortunate to get CRT/HCRS case-managing & counseling services at no cost, because of federal medicaid waiver under which program operates-don't know if I'm getting more help than others in the state.
There are so many competing (budgetary) priorities that I can't imagine how politicians/officials can be influenced to deal with this issue. Those who can cope better ("high-functioning") seem less in need, therefore are less compelling (than people w/ASD's who are "lower-functioning" or more obviously impaired) to those who make policy decisions. Yet, a modicum of assistance for someone "higher-functioning" can make great deal of positive difference in person's quality of life-without that, these folks "fall through the cracks". "Too impaired" to fit in smoothly but "not impaired enough" to qualify for support-the maddening conundrum of being "in between", in that difficult-to-quantify range that's neither "here" nor "there". Not trying to divide dx'd people into levels of functioning, just noting that chronic, low-grade problems are less attention-grabbing than acute, high-intensity problems, in general (whatever the context/situation/challenge).
Alas, Vt. is hardly unique in falling short in these areas (not saying that's okay, merely that it's probably true).