Parents sue to block rule eliminating Medicaid funding for specialized autistic services

The Ohio Legal Rights Services filed a lawsuit against the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and the Ohio Department of Mental Health in District Court in Columbus (Source: "Parents sue for autistic services," The Columbus Dispatch, May 9, 2008).  This lawsuit, filed on behalf of some parents with children who have autism, seeks to block implementation of a rule that is to take effect on July 1st.  This rule would eliminate Medicaid funding for specialized autism services that their children had been receiving through the Step by Step Academy in Worthington, Ohio.

According to the Department of Job and Family Services, the Step by Step Academy accounted for half of the $5.3 million spent last year on autism treatment, while only serving 4 percent of all children with autism served under Medicaid.