Tricare Cuts Hit Autism Households
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“A new low”: TRICARE is cutting services for children with autism that affect military families
Rachael Riley
The Fayetteville Observer
When her father returned from a third assignment in 2013, Mia Martin was diagnosed with autism at the age of 3.
Autism is a bio-neurodevelopmental disorder that affects normal brain development and ultimately cognitive function and social interaction.
Mia was enrolled in a public school for a while.
Her days started around 5 a.m. to catch a bus.
She sat in a classroom until about 1 p.m., then went to therapy for four hours, and ended her day around 6 p.m.
James Martin and his daughter Mia are one of the military families affected by the Defense Health Agency’s decision to remove certain applied behavior analysis services from the classroom.
The 12-hour days were part of Mia’s routine for four years.
Mia’s father, Fort Bragg combat veteran James Martin, knew Mia was making it difficult.
The public classroom was too rigid.
“Even in a classroom with 15 children with a special education teacher and an assistant, my daughter is quite a handful,” said Martin.
Mia couldn’t adjust. Read more here.
