GILMOUR: Ontario Autism Program needs solutions, not sound bites

QUEEN’S PARK — NDP Shadow Minister for the Ontario Autism Program (OAP) Alexa Gilmour (Parkdale—High Park) is calling on the Ford government to urgently address the waitlist backlog for core autism funding, with more than 67,000 Ontario children waiting for the help they need.

“The average wait time between registering for the OAP and receiving meaningful support is over five years,” said Gilmour. “This is unconscionable. We have a province wealthy enough to spend on Doug Ford’s vanity projects, but when vulnerable children and families need help, the Conservatives make them wait.

“The Ontario Autism Coalition has told us what we need. Immediate emergency funding to enhance core services and clear the waitlist. Transparent, needs-based clinical funding indexed to inflation. Meaningful mental health investments, and above all, transparency from Minister Parsa.

“Every year, Premier Ford and Minister Parsa tout their “record” investments, while families grow more desperate. Children need solutions, not sound bites. They have left children and families behind by wasting invaluable early intervention years. Ford and Parsa need to stop letting kids fall through the cracks and address this crisis with the urgency it demands.”