Autism news

Professor Whitehouse sits facing the camera

Australia’s leading expert on autism says a new model of intervention could reduce long-term disability from the disorder, by a factor of three, and help to make the ballooning National Disability Insurance Scheme more sustainable.

“The NDIS is currently relying on an outdated model of when to commence autism therapy,” said Andrew Whitehouse, head of Australia’s leading autism research team, CliniKids, based at the Telethon Kids Institute in Perth.

Read more about How to reduce autism prevalence and save the NDIS

Subject: your "value for money" claim on ABC's QandA
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 2022 14:09:40 +1000
To: senator.ruston@aph.gov.au
CC:Bill Shorten <bill.shorten.mp@aph.gov.au>, Minister.Reynolds@dss.gov.au, Hughes, Hollie (Senator) <Senator.Hughes@aph.gov.au>

Dear Minister Ruston,

Read more about your "value for money" claim on ABC's QandA

Young autistic women are around 13 times more likely to attempt suicide than women who aren’t autistic.

Read more about Autistic people are six times more likely to attempt suicide – poor mental health support may be to blame

The following is from the Senate Autism Inquiry report 2022 webpage - the full report can be down loaded from the link below.

Executive Summary

Read more about Services, support and life outcomes for autistic Australians

The Australian Autism Alliance is holding a webinar on Tuesday 29 March (from 12.15pm-1.00pm) at which Chair of the Select Committee, Senator The Hon. Hollie Hughes, and Deputy Chair, Senator The Hon. Carol Brown will outline the report’s key findings and recommendations.

A4's Monique Blakemore will be chairing.

Click here to Register.

Read more about Free Webinar: What's in the Senate Inquiry Report on Autism?

Amaze: Media Release

The Australian Autism Alliance today welcomes the release of the Senate Select Committee Inquiry’s history-making report on Autism. This is the first time there has been such a broad-ranging national inquiry into the issues facing Autistic Australians with recommendations for positive change.

Read more about Autism Alliance welcomes bold Senate Report to deliver positive change for all Autistic Australians

Rick Morton

Tender documents show the government is tweaking the National Disability Insurance Scheme to exclude thousands of children with disabilities such as autism.

Sorry folk, the rest of the article is behind the paywall ...

Read more about Exclusive: NDIS reforms target children under nine

Even as a child, the comedian knew her brain was atypical. But it was only in her late 20s that her anxiety, depression and meltdowns finally made sense

ou don’t have to be an expert to know that people with autism don’t get to speak about their own experiences. Until very recently, autism has largely only been understood through the prism of the experience of parents and as a list of observations that mostly neurotypical medical professionals have made and assigned meaning to.

Read more about Hannah Gadsby on her autism diagnosis: ‘I’ve always been plagued by a sense that I was a little out of whack’

Peter Hess

Two changes to the criteria for diagnosing autism are slated for release tomorrow in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-5-TR), published by the American Psychiatric Association. The small changes add clarity and nuance to how the reference text defines autism, but they are unlikely to change diagnostic practice, experts say.