I’m delinquent in posting this appeal for assistance from frequent commenter Abu Sinan. His four-year-old son has been diagnosed with Autism with Pervasive Developmental Delay. Necessary medical treatment is very expensive and while he works two jobs to address the expense, he could use some help. Please visit his site to read the details and see if you might be able to give him a hand.

Our Family’s Journey With Autism and Our Cry for Help

In the current debate swirling around healthcare, health insurance and reform, the personal element is clearly missing. We’ve heard all of this talk about pre-existing conditions, people dropped when they get sick, caps and limits, but no one is talking about the personal side of the subject. What about the families struggling to get care or the family members who cannot get the care they need because insurance doesn’t cover it and the costs are just too high for any but the very rich to afford?

I want to present my family’s story to add that missing personal element. I am the father of a four year old child with Autism. We knew something was wrong when he turned two and still wasn’t talking so we had him evaluated and got an initial diagnosis of PDD (Pervasive Developmental Delay). This came from a county worker who was really unable to provide an official medical diagnosis but it set the stage for us to get very limited services through the county. These services consisted of two forty minute therapy sessions each week.

We took our little Sinan to the Children’s National Medical Center here in Washington DC. This first experience taught us a lot of what to expect in the future. Due to the shortage of professionals to treat children with Autism it took us six months to get an appointment. Once we did get the appointment for an initial evaluation, it was done over two separate sessions at the Children’s National Medical Center. Limits in the number of people able to give care are a huge issue, so are the costs.. We eventually got a diagnosis for Sinan of Autism with PDD.
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