Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) affects on average 1 in 110 children in the U.S. While ASD doesn’t discriminate across, race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status, it seems that it is 4 to 5 times more likely to occur in boys than in girls. According to the CDC, roughly 730,000 people between the ages of 0 and 21 will have an ASD.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) announced recently that programs authorized under the original Combating Autism Act (CAA) will continue for an additional three years, promising help for children with autism and their parents. It is estimated that 48,000 children across NY suffer from autism. That’s more than pediatric autism, diabetes, and AIDS combined.
Late Monday night the U.S. Senate unanimously approved legislation to combat autism. The House of Representatives had already passed the bill. It is now up to President Obama to sign the bill into law, something he has said he will do.