FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 12, 2015

Autism Alliance Applauds King County Settlement Extending Critical Medical Coverage

REDMOND--King County has agreed to settle litigation alleging that the county has illegally denied medically-necessary neurodevelopmental therapies (NDT) to children struggling with autism and other disorders. NDT combines occupational, physical and speech treatments and are considered effective for a wide range of conditions, including autism, cerebral palsy, and stroke among others.

“We’re very happy to hear that King County has done the right thing and extended crucial neurodevelopmental therapies to its employees,” said Arzu Forough, CEO of the Washington Autism Alliance & Advocacy. “For too long, families across the country have been denied coverage for care their children need to lead happy, healthy lives. King County employees can rest easy knowing that their children will be able to receive the care they need.”

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Founded in 2007, Washington Autism Alliance & Advocacy (WAAA) exists to remove barriers to timely access to evidence based treatment, effective education programs, sustainable community based services and supports for children and adults statewide. WAAA works to:
Remove barriers to insurance coverage of effective autism treatment in the state of Washington
Promote Clinical Practice Guidelines for evidence based treatment of autism
Build an adequate network of healthcare providers for those in need regardless of funding source
Provide support, guidance, and resources to families and professionals to make effective autism treatment and socially significant habilitative programs attainable statewide