Financial Challenges Among Autism's Costs

April 2, 2009 — -- When Santa Reyes' son, Yoleheri, was diagnosed with autism at age 3, the Lawrence, Mass., woman, who speaks little English, had no idea where to turn for help for her autistic son.

"I was very worried, because I could see that my child was not like the rest of the children," said Reyes, who also has a 22-month-old son who is not autistic.

When she began to pursue answers, she discovered her son was not receiving appropriate services, such as speech therapy.

On this World Autism Awareness Day, it may be worth noting Reyes' experience is not unique. It is true of many families with limited resources who are dealing with an autistic offspring.

Autism's toll isn't merely calculated in the difficulty it takes to communicate or learn; the complex neurobiological disorder also adds up quickly in dollars and cents.

"The financial toll it takes on a family is horrible because you can spend up to $40,000 and $50,000 a year for therapies for your children," said Bob Wright of Autism Speaks.

Moreover, it typically costs $3.2 million to raise an autistic child into adulthood, according to a Harvard School of Public Health study published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine in the spring of 2007.

"If you are African American, Hispanic, or your first language is not English, than you're highly likely to be diagnosed in kindergarten or first grade, not having had early diagnosis," said Wright, a former General Electric executive. "And then, in that situation, you've missed out on all the earlier interventions."

Wright and his wife, Suzanne, founded Autism Speaks, one of the country's leading autism advocacy groups, after their grandson, Christian, was diagnosed with autism at 2½.

Wright, whose now-7-year-old grandson has shown some improvement from programs, said it's imperative to break the cultural barrier in order to funnel more resources to autistic children at an earlier age.