Greens call on Ford government to fund Ontario Autism Program

October 16, 2023

QUEEN'S PARK — Ontario Greens leader and MPP for Guelph Mike Schreiner released the following statement calling on the Ford government to provide affordable and accessible services for children with autism.

“In Doug Ford’s Ontario, children with autism are waiting for years to receive essential therapies while his government fails to deliver on its promise to fix the Ontario Autism Program.

According to this government’s own records, their current program budget will only fund 20,000 children for core clinical therapies.

That’s a far cry from the 60,000 children who need support – and the waitlist for core clinical therapies is only growing.

Over and over again, this government has failed Ontario families.

This government’s promise to fix the OAP is completely at odds with the bleak reality that so many are facing.

Families cannot continue to wait for the services their children need. They deserve a rapidly available needs-based autism program that serves all children regardless of age.

Ontario Greens call on the Ford government to invest in a better future for children with autism through meaningful, long-term investment in the Ontario Autism Program by implementing the much-needed solutions already proposed by the Ontario Autism Coalition.”

-30-