Fw: [SPCAPV] FW: BC Government Defies Supreme Court Over Autism Treatment

[Guest guest]

RIGHT ON!!!

Kathy

BC Government Defies Supreme Court Over Autism Treatment

>

>

>FEAT DAILY NEWSLETTER Sacramento, California http://www.feat.org

> " Healing Autism: No Finer a Cause on the Planet "

>______________________________________________________

>

>August 29, 2000

>

> ** CONFERENCE, WORKSHOP & EVENTS CALENDAR DEADLINE SEPT. 4 **

> Submit copy to: FEAT@...

>

>

>BC Government Defies Supreme Court Over Autism Treatment

>

>Also:

> * Evidence for a Cerebellar Role in Reduced Exploration and

> Stereotyped Behavior in Autism

> * Lovaas Report, Diet Websites

> * Indiana Wants You

>

> [“Double-talk from Dosanjh Leaves Children Hanging Again BC

Government

>Defies Supreme Court Decision On Autism Treatment,” asserts Families for

>Early Autism Treatment of British Columbia (FEAT BC) in the following

>report.]

>http://featbc.org/downloads/Sun_07_28_00.pdf

>

> On July 26, a decisive judgment came down in BC Supreme Court -- the

>government violates the rights of children with autism by denying them

>medically necessary treatment. After two weeks of government refusal to

>explain how they would satisfy the Supreme Court ruling against them,

>Premier Ujjal Dosanjh appeared on Monday, August 14 on CKNW's Bill Good

>radio show. The premier said he understood the Supreme Court decision

>regarding autism treatment is important, and agreed proper autism treatment

>is a health issue, not a social services issue as the government has long

>contended. The Premier said the Minister of Health would be " looking into

>it. " Meanwhile, the Deputy Minister of Health continued refusing to meet

>with the petitioning families and their lawyers. Finally, last Friday,

>instead of obeying the court's ruling, Dosanjh's government filed an appeal

>demanding it be set aside.

> The government waited until the period for appeal was only hours from

>expiration, after a month of ignoring Justice Allan's order that they

>prepare submissions on how they would remedy decades of abuse against a

>group of seriously ill children. The appeal is literally groundless Ñ the

>government lawyers list no errors made Justice Allan; they simply want her

>decision overturned.

> The judgement states the government of this province discriminates

>against children with autism and is violating their Constitutional rights.

>This government is now clearly stating they are bound and determined to

>continue this harmful Charter violation.

> Ironically, the very format of the case of Auton et al versus the

>Attorney General and the Medical Services Commission of BC was set up at

the

>government's request Ñ and while Premier Dosanjh headed the Ministry of

>Attorney General. Originally filed as a class action suit, government

>lawyers had instead firmly requested a Judicial Review proceeding. Their

>argument at that time, over a year ago, was that they were only interested

>in receiving a clear decision from the courts on their responsibilities

>towards children with autism. Now that they have the decision they so

firmly

>requested, they refuse to abide by it, and instead are embarking on further

>delays and legal maneuvering.

> As a result, children who desperately need treatment for their

>condition are again being denied.

> Four decades of scientific study have proven that Lovaas-ABA

treatment

>is the only medical treatment effective against autism and is most

effective

>when started with autistic children as early in life as possible. Years of

>appeal against a decision the government refuses to accept will waste

untold

>tax dollars and force families who can ill afford it to devote more of

their

>shrinking resources to continue the fight. Most importantly, this legal

>maneuvering by the government will result in another generation of children

>with autism being lost to the ravages of the condition, instead of

receiving

>the treatment that the BC Supreme Court has ruled is their constitutional

>right.

>* * *

>

>Evidence for a Cerebellar Role in Reduced Exploration and Stereotyped

>Behavior in Autism

>

> Pierce and Courchesne

>Accepted 7/31/2000

>http://www-east.elsevier.com/bps/abstracts/5175abs.htm

>

>Abstract

> Background: Although limited environmental exploration in autism is

an

>obvious behavioral feature, and may be a manifestation of " restricted

>interests " as described in DSM-IV criteria, there have been no behavioral

or

>neurobiological studies of this important aspect of the disorder. Given

>consistent reports of cerebellar abnormality in autism, combined with

animal

>research showing a relationship between exploration and the cerebellum, the

>present study aimed to test the possible link between cerebellar

abnormality

>and exploration in autism.

> Methods: The relationship between visuospatial exploration,

>stereotyped motor movements and MRI measures of the cerebellar vermis,

whole

>brain volume, and frontal lobes in 14 autistic and 14 normal children was

>investigated. Children were exposed to a large room with several

exploration

>containers and instructed to play. Exploration behavior was videotaped and

>scored for percentage of time engaged in exploration, number of containers

>explored, as well as stereotyped movements.

> Results: Children with autism spent significantly less time in active

>exploration and explored fewer containers overall than normal children.

>Measures of decreased exploration were significantly correlated with the

>magnitude of cerebellar hypoplasia of vermal lobules VI-VII in the autistic

>children, but no relationship to vermis size was found with normal

controls.

>Further, measures of rates of stereotyped behavior were significantly

>negatively correlated with area measures of cerebellar vermis lobules

VI-VII

>and positively correlated with frontal lobe volume in the autism sample.

> Conclusions: Reduced environmental exploration and repetitive

behavior

>may have particularly important developmental consequences for children

with

>autism because it may lead him/her to miss learning opportunities that fall

>outside their scope of interest. Our findings represent the first

documented

>link between the restricted range of interests and stereotyped behaviors

>pathognomonic of autism and particular neuroanatomical sites.

>

>

> Take Some Mystery out of Autism

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>* * *

>

>Lovaas Report, Diet Websites

>

>Where to get the recent report “CLARIFYING COMMENTS ON THE UCLA YOUNG

AUTISM

>PROJECT” by Ivar Lovaas, Ph.D.:

>

>Complete File

>http://www.feat.org/lovaas/full.htm

>

>In segments:

>

>1 http://www.feat.org/lovaas/intro.htm

>2 http://www.feat.org/lovaas/body.htm

>3a http://www.feat.org/lovaas/part_three.htm

>3b http://www.feat.org/lovaas/page_4.htm

>4 http://www.feat.org/lovaas/appendix_5.htm

>5 http://www.feat.org/lovaas/summary.htm

>

>If you are mentioned in this report and would like to respond publically,

>please contact the newsletter editor at FEAT@...

>

>Food Sites

>

>Autism NDI - Autism Network for Dietary Intervention

>http://autismndi.com/

>

>Gluten Solutions

>http://www.glutensolutions.com

>* * *

>

>Indiana Wants You

>

> I have a proposal coming through the District 9 Trustee of the Indiana

>State Medical Association here in Indiana to mandate health insurance

>coverage for autism and neuroimmune dysfunction syndromes. If the doctors

>approve it, it will then go to state legislature with the Indiana Medical

>Association's

>approval and support. I need help from Indiana parents and others who

might

>help. Proposal goes forward Sept 16 and 17. Parent attendance will be

>helpful as well. Please put me in touch with all who can help. Thanks!

>

>Jim Smyth

>

>jim@...

>

>-----------------------------------------------------

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>

> >>>>>> DAN! Conference September 16-17

> >>>>>> Baker Megson Shattock Wakefield Gupta Seroussi Rimland

> >>>>>> http://www.autism.com/dan/info.html San Diego, California

>______________________________________________________

>Editor: Lenny Schafer | Eastern Editor: | News Wire: Ron Sleith

>schafer@... | PhD | News: Kay Stammers

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>