Council To Allocate $3M For Autism Services
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
City Council members plan to announce a $3 million initiative today to boost autism services and fund an autism awareness campaign. The plan, called the “1 in 150” initiative in reference to the rate of the disorder, would earmark the funds in next year’s City Council budget. Half of the money would be split among the city’s 51 council districts to support existing programs; the other half would underwrite the awareness campaign. The rate of autism appears to be rising in New York City, with 5,627 autistic children in schools last year compared to 3,278 in 2001. “The numbers are so staggering,” Councilman David Weprin, who spearheaded the initiative, said. “There’s no question we could use a lot more money.”
