Combating Autism Act Extension Controversy

In an interview, ASAN President Ari Ne’eman discussed our opposition to extending the flawed Combating Autism Act, which failed to address the urgent need for services across the lifespan and did not involve self-advocates in research and planning. The legislation created an unbalanced research agenda in which less than one percent of autism research dollars were spent to fund studies addressing the needs of Autistic adults. The reauthorization bill introduced in Congress on May 26, 2011, was nearly identical to the original legislation, with the same flaws.