This article was published in The Autism Society of North Carolina’s summer 2011 issue of The Spectrum. Current and past issues of The Spectrum can be found under Publications on our website. Families, self-advocates and ASNC faced difficult challenges in advocating for better services and supports for people on the autism spectrum as we headed into the long…
This Week at the NC General Assembly
Governor’s Budget Veto On Sunday The Governor vetoed the state budget passed by the NC General Assembly. At this point, the NC Senate has enough majority votes to override a veto, and the NC House believes they also can override a veto if at least 4 of the 5 Democrats who voted for the budget…
State Budget and Managed Care Waiver Update
NC State Budget Last week the NC General Assembly passed a budget for the 2011-2013 budget years that was compromise bill negotiated between the NC House and NC Senate, prior to the Senate passing their own budget. In the final version, the General Assembly used the House version of the budget numbers for Health and…
Autism Insurance: Not Dead Yet!
Autism insurance bill sponsors have introduced very good bills this year that make sure that North Carolina health plans cover services for autism spectrum disorder so it’s disappointing that autism insurance legislation has not moved forward in the North Carolina General Assembly this session. We all know it’s the right thing to do, making sure…
Senate Budget Released: More Cuts to Autism!
On May 24, the North Carolina Senate released its version of the state budget, which cuts an additional 3% from Health and Human Services programs, including $30 million in cuts to state funded services (IPRS), $51 million more in cuts to Medicaid optional services for adults, $10 million in cuts to non-profits, and $25 million…
Managed Care Waivers: A Guide for What You Should Know
There are days in public policy work where it can feel like you are wandering lost, and unlike the woman pictured here there is no map. Then there are the days where you have no shortage of maps, but they all say to go in different directions. One of my jobs at the Autism Society in North Carolina (ASNC)…
It’s Time to be the Teacher
Last year I did something I had never done before. I attended a committee meeting for the North Carolina General Assembly. Actually, it was the Senate Health Committee and on the calendar that day was a bill that would require all state regulated health plans, including the State Employee Health Plan, to cover behavioral therapy…
House Budget Proposal Released, Includes 1915 b/c Managed Care Waiver
Budget: The General Assembly House Appropriations Sub-committees released their budget proposals and budget special provisions last week. In most cases, sub-committees used the Governor’s budget cuts as a starting point and then cut an additional 1.6 billion dollars from the state budget for a total reduction of 2.5 billion dollars from the base budget….
April is Autism Awareness Month
April is Autism Awareness Month During the month of April, the Autism Society of North Carolina encourages the public to learn more about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and the resources available to individuals on the autism spectrum and their families. Autism affects 1 out of every 110 children born today, making it the second most…