Susan Murdoch was all too familiar with that feeling of helplessness and fear that comes when one's child is diagnosed with autism, "The day Sean was diagnosed with autism was the hardest and saddest day of my husband's and my life."

The biggest obstacle that Susan and her family faced was not knowing very much about autism and not knowing where to go for help. "We felt completely lost and bewildered." There were very few resources and support available and they were completely on their own, which Susan says was a very lonely place to be. Luckily, Susan was referred to an incredibly helpful ABA therapist, Dr. Rinamarie Leon-Guerrero. They were also able to enroll Sean into the Experimental Education Unit at the University of Washington. They offered her and her husband a "village" of support resources, understanding, information, and educational opportunities

Susan and her family felt extremely fortunate that they were able to get Sean into therapies and continue with ABA despite the expense. She has seen how beneficial it is for her own child and felt that it was wrong that some families were denied the opportunity and were struggling to come up with the money for a service that she felt was so vital to the rehabilitation for their children. “I knew there were many families where the parents held 2 jobs, lost their homes, went bankrupt paying for ABA therapy or in the worst case scenario, their children did not have the chance to receive it. I felt that this was just wrong. “

She decided to take up the cause and advocate for those families who were being denied coverage for these therapies. When she heard about a class action lawsuit through Washington Autism Alliance & Advocacy’s outreach efforts against Regence/Uniform Medical Plan and asked if she would be a class representative, she agreed. Through this class action suit, she met Arzu Forough and began also working with Washington Autism Alliance and Advocacy.

In spring of 2011, it was ruled that denying coverage of ABA therapy was contradictory to the Mental Health Parity Act. The plaintiffs had to go back to court again in September 2012 as Washington State Healthcare Authority tried to limit the coverage of ABA therapy only to those participating in a very narrow case study. In January of 2012, it was ruled again that ABA therapy should be provided to all who qualify, not only those who are in a case study.

Susan has played a very important role in helping Washington Families obtain healthcare coverage for autism therapies. She is a ray of hope to her family and others around her. She says that if there is any advice that she can give to other parents of children with autism it would be to embrace it. “After you get through the initial heartbreak and come to accept that your child’s life is not what you had thought it would be, then go out there and embrace the new life.” Get help, reach out and find support for you and your family and in turn be supportive of your child. “Most of all just love your wonderful child for who he or she is and appreciate their own uniqueness.  Love, determination, and hope are key!”