Autism news
NDIA Chief Executive admits flaws in NDIS coverage for ACT families
National Disability Insurance Agency chief executive David Bowen.Photo: Graham Tidy
The chief executive of the National Disability Insurance Agency has admitted there are gaps in coverage for some ACT families, as administrators respond to criticism regarding delays, bureaucracy and complicated paperwork.
Is the NHS failing women with autism?
The myth of the ‘extreme male brain’ means women with autism are struggling to get the help they need
Women with autism are often vulnerable to abuse. Photograph: Alamy
Rachel Williams Tuesday 6 January 2015
Ballarat autism blogger threatened with death
Philip Gluyas has taken on American anti-autism bloggers in court.
Two "keyboard warriors" - one in Victoria and one in Los Angeles - were involved in heated online arguments over the existence of autism that quickly escalated into death threats, a court has heard.
Philip Gluyas, 49, an umpire in the Ballarat junior football league with Asperger's syndrome, claims to be living in fear after anti-autism blogger Oliver Canby urged people to kill him in a series of posts on the website 'Autism is Bad'.
Canby, who lives in Los Angeles, wanted people to show up at Mr Gluyas' Sebastopol home and murder him, the Supreme Court was told on Tuesday.
Canby, who does not believe Asperger's exists, claimed he would offer a $500 reward to anyone who carried out the murder.
Mr Gluyas, an outspoken advocate for the rights of people with autism, is suing Canby in the Victorian Supreme Court for defamation claiming he had made false and malicious statements about him, exposing him to hate, ridicule and contempt.
Mr Gluyas, who runs the blog 'Phil Gluyas: Autism News and Views. The truth about Autism is here', was first diagnosed with Asperger's in 1997. The condition is considered to be part of the autism spectrum.
Is the U.S. Prepared for a Growing Population of Adults With Autism?
More than 50,000 individuals with autism transition into adulthood each year.
The Autism CARES Act will devote $1.3 billion over five years to perform autism research and search for gaps in support.
Disability employment scheme: sudden exclusion, fish-slapped by Departments and their "systems"
People with autism have difficulty getting a job. The letter below describes the experience of one person and his carer on reaching a point just 2 years after leaving school.
This experience shows that the Commonwealth Government's Disability Employment Scheme (DES) is largely intractable. The Australian Bureau of Statistics describes its abysmal outcomes for people with autism/ASD (link here):
In 2012, the labour force participation rate for people with autism was 42%. This compares with 53% labour force participation rate for people with disabilities and 83% for people without disabilities.
The 41.2% of people with autism in the labour market in 2012 experienced 23% unemployment (there is improvement since 2009 when labour force participation was just 34% and unemployment was 41%).