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Kids so sensitive to lights that Christmas trees are out of the question, toddlers who never learned to turn and look when spoken to, early childhood vaccines (maybe), mystery genes that keep a young brain from creating enough connections to relate to any part of our hectic world (maybe), health insurance companies, and the state of Illinois.

The answer is autism.

That’s autism with a capital "A" for the parents of the 26,000 autistic kids in Illinois who hope state lawmakers will give them a shot at "normalcy" by requiring insurance companies to pay up to $36,000 a year for occupational, physical, speech and behavioral therapies, and psychiatric and psychological services.

We would be joining Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who signed on the dotted line Wednesday, and seven other states that have passed laws ending insurance discrimination against autistic children by making crucial, life changing early-childhood interventions a covered benefit.

Aside from Dustin Hoffman’s character Raymond in the flick "Rain Man," or the pain it is to be around most autistic kids, people don’t know much about autism.

That they are "a pain" is not a criticism; it’s a tremendous understatement and a tragic reality.

In my few years of being a special ed. teacher I had my share of trying to connect a wide range of autistic kids – from the lively, hair-yanking, high-pitched-screaming ones to the highly-functioning who nevertheless couldn’t bear to wear collared shirts or drink anything warmer or cooler than room temperature – to ABC’s and colors. When it wasn’t physically jarring (I probably fall into the mild Asperger’s spectrum myself) it was completely emotionally draining.

Never mind the kids – the ones with the constantly vacant expressionless gazes who in some cases were mostly "gone" forever – even worse were their parents: an endless parade of lonely souls carrying living the daily grief of an entire life lost to autism. The most broken of them blame themselves for not knowing – or having – enough to get help early.

"With autism, early intervention is the key," said Nicholas Zacny, the 31-year-old parent of five-year-old Fiona Zacny who – thankfully – was diagnosed by her doctor at 18 months and was fortunate enough to have been living in Indiana where, since July 2001, insurance companies have been on the hook to pay for expensive therapies.

"She was diagnosed and got into a program where a behavioral therapist and occupational therapist came into our home once a week. In Illinois they don’t have that sort of thing and insurance tends to be very limited," Nick said.

High controversy swirls around whether autism is caused by early-childhood vaccinations, or can be cured through special diets or by removing heavy metals from kids’ bodies. But there’s no question that providing kids with trained therapists who can teach them how to cope with the too-loud sounds, too-bright lights, and too-scratchy clothes in our endlessly stimulating world works miracles, as was the case for Fiona.

"I would take her to my grandparents’ house and she’d scream and cry was terrified, now when she sees her grandparents she’s like a normal child," Nick told me, adding that if the law passes in Illinois the opportunity to bring Fiona, who currently lives with her mom in Indiana, to live here with him would become a reality, "should the need arise."

Nick constantly promotes two autism advocacy organizations – Autism Speaks and Talk About Curing Autism – who have supported him, Fiona, and the rest of their family throughout her young life. He says you can hit either website to write to your legislators for changes in existing laws or participate by donating time or money.

I say you can make a big difference by just learning a few things. Then, give an understanding smile to the tired-looking family with the wild kid next time one ventures out to your favorite restaurant or store.

- one in every 150 children born in the US (approximately 1 million) have autism

- it receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases

- "prevalence of autism among Hispanics is lower than non-Hispanic ethnic groups (1 in 300) but is most likely due to under-diagnosis and not that fewer Hispanics have autism," according to Easter Seals





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