Re: States to Move to with Aspie Child -- TX, NM, AR

[Guest guest]

Cool, Thanks. I'll ask my HR department if they've looked into this

insurance company.

Thanks again

>>> beachbodytan2002@... 5/10/2006 12:58:21 PM >>>

Don't know if this would be a help but as far as Medical insurance:

GHI/CBP - Empire BlueCrosss BlueShield, does accept the DX of autism

and pays for therapy. if you add optional rider to your plan it will

cover you in any state with any doctor that participates with GHI. you

don't need a referral either. you have a $15.00 co-pay for medical,

specialist $20.00 co-pay. They also have " out of network " . If

interested this is the number: 1-800-433-9592 www.ghi.com

www.empireblue.com/nyc Hope this helps. this one is the most

reasonable priced at $162.95 per month according to this book.

They have a few others around same price & up. I don't know if the

price range changes according to the state your in and I dint know how

this insurance works. (if the co-pay) changes in different states. but

you can check out their web-site. I was just briefly looking through

this Health Benefit Program booklet.

I'm looking in a book with all different insurances that cover mental

health. If you want the names and phone numbers I can post the list I

have.

Van Atta <svanatta@...> wrote:

Good luck, there are not too many insurances that will cover an

autism

diagnosis. The health care community consideres it a learning

disability, not a health issue. The cost 3 years ago for my son was

$1600, the insurance was suppose to pay 80%. They payed $220, after

I

appealed it they payed another $250. They will not pay for any of his

therapies because of the autism diagnosis. We have had two different

insurances UHC and Medical Mutural. Luckily the department of MR/DD

is

paying for his therapy. If your child has a dual diagnosis such as

ADHD, depression etc, then the mental health portion will pay for

therapy, just make sure the autism diagnosis does not get sent to the

insurance compnay as well. Unless some big shot politician or actor

has

a child with autism I do not see anything being done about getting

health care insurances to accept autism as a neurological disorder, a

medical problem with the brain and help us be able to get the

therapies

our children need.

I'm sorry to vent, but the health isnurance issue just get me worked

up.

>>> deatrawright@... 5/9/2006 3:31:23 PM >>>

Cross Arkansas off your list... My husband is active duty in the Air

Force and we are talking about trying to get reassigned. My son

didn't have a problem getting diagnosed. It was our health

insurance, sadly, that we're having trouble with. However, in

Little Rock, there is only one place to get a comprehensive

evaluation like we needed and they don't participate with Tricare.

It is difficult to conceive that in a profession were you can be

asked to put your life on the line, your son cannot obtain a

psychological evaluation without it having to be an out of pocket

expense. I hope there is a solution to getting us out of here,

preferrably Virginia or Florida.

- Dee

>

> I live in VA Beach, VA and have had wonderful assistance here. I

can not imagine moving from this area. My husband is military and

we keep holding our breath.

>

> Lori

> ( ) States to Move to with Aspie Child --

TX, NM, AR

>

>

> Well, I've crossed Mississippi off our list. When I was doing

my

> research, I came across an article that listed the top 10 worst

states

> to live in if you have a developmental disability. Mississippi

was at

> the top of the list. Georgia was there, as well as Louisiana,

> Alabama, Florida and other states.

>

> I'm going to talk to my husband about NC as someone suggested

that it

> was a great state and didn't get too cold. But I am also

wondering

> about Texas, New Mexico and Arkansas. New Mexico says

specifically in

> their statutes that Asperger's Syndrome is accepted by their DD

> department. But do they actually apply the statute as it is

written

> (or does it get " reinterpreted " )?

>

> TIA

>

> C

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Western New Jersey seems to have good overall support. Everything

that I read about the type of support that we should be getting or

new strategies to investigate, the school system seems to already be

doing it. In Mercer county the Special Services school (2 years of

PreSchool)was fantastic. It made a world of difference in how much he

blossomed. Even when he came back to the district in Kindergarten

(now in 1st Grade MainStreamed w/Para assigned) the school and

support staff have always been on the ball. If we notice anything and

want to make a suggestion as to how to attack a situation, the school

works with us. Many times they will bring the point up to us before

we can approach them. I have nothing but good things to say about the

experiences we have had so far.

Part of the reason I think that we have good services in this area is

because of the private academies and schools also in the area. For

example EDEN services is HQ'd nearby, COSAC is in the county, Rutgers

and Princeton do research on autism and there are many different

support groups.

Rich

> >

> > I would suggest that you talk to local autism groups and get a

feel

> for the schools in

> > the area. Know that there will always be at least one unhappy

> person at every school, so

> > go with the majority of the feedback you hear. I would then call

> the school district and

> > see what they could provide for your child. Nothing is definite

> until they actually meet

> > your child and have an ARD to set up services, but they can

discuss

> what they can offer.

> > Then if you find an area, ask to see the school. Tour the

school.

> Talk to the principal

> > and see what they can offer. If the school won'tallow this, then

> don't go there. We

> > knew what school district we wanted in and so we just looked at a

> few schools before we

> > settled on one. We knew that the middle school would be awful,

but

> the elementary school

> > was so good for us, that we decided to go for it anyway. At the

> time, my son needed a

> > lot of support and because he got it, he is pretty much

independent

> in the 5th grade.

> >

> > Also, the school district you choose is important at least in

> Texas. See what services

> > they offer for transtions out of high school and beyond. We

chose

> Northside ISD because

> > they have a program for kids that need additional training beyond

> high school but are not

> > yet 21. These kids learn vocational and life skills and, if they

> qualify, can even live

> > in a NISD approved group setting. It is awesome! I like to

think

> my son will never need

> > it, but it is there is he does.

> >

> > LaRae

> >

>

>

> Thanks LaRae for your help. That info that you provided was

exactly

> the kind of info that we need. We are not certain whether our son

> will be able to be independent even though he is very intelligent.

> So it is good to know of a school district that provides these

> services.

>

> C

>

[Guest guest]

> >

> > Cross Arkansas off your list... My husband is active duty in the

Air

> > Force and we are talking about trying to get reassigned. My son

> > didn't have a problem getting diagnosed. It was our health

> > insurance, sadly, that we're having trouble with. However, in

> > Little Rock, there is only one place to get a comprehensive

> > evaluation like we needed and they don't participate with

Tricare.

> > It is difficult to conceive that in a profession were you can be

> > asked to put your life on the line, your son cannot obtain a

> > psychological evaluation without it having to be an out of

pocket

> > expense. I hope there is a solution to getting us out of here,

> > preferrably Virginia or Florida.

> >

> > - Dee

> >

>

> Dear Dee,

>

> Was this just a problem with your specific insurance? We also had

to

> pay out of our pocket for our comprehensive eval where we are at

> (AL). We are trying to get the school to pay for the IEE, but

haven't

> got them to yet. How about services that the school and/or state

> provides now that your son is diagnosed?

>

> C

>

I'm not certain how someone with other insurance would have fared in

our situation. It would depend if the facility participated with

that insurance. I just know that Tricare doesn't do much in terms

of " psychological evaluations " . My main issue with where we are is

that there doesn't seem to be any sort of support system. My son's

school is helpful, but their rules on how/when to do evaluations for

occupational therapy is a little insulting. For instance, they

offer the evaluation and subsequent therapy IF his issues are

creating a problem in his classroom setting. My son is quite the

little faker. Therefore, he will probably not qualify even for the

evaluation. Services are available here, but only at one facility

which happens not to participate with our insurance. At this point,

I think I am hurting more for a support system than my son is for

therpay alternatives.

[Guest guest]

>

> Western New Jersey seems to have good overall support. Everything

> that I read about the type of support that we should be getting or

> new strategies to investigate, the school system seems to already

be

> doing it. In Mercer county the Special Services school (2 years of

> PreSchool)was fantastic. It made a world of difference in how much

he

> blossomed. Even when he came back to the district in Kindergarten

> (now in 1st Grade MainStreamed w/Para assigned) the school and

> support staff have always been on the ball. If we notice anything

and

> want to make a suggestion as to how to attack a situation, the

school

> works with us. Many times they will bring the point up to us before

> we can approach them. I have nothing but good things to say about

the

> experiences we have had so far.

>

> Part of the reason I think that we have good services in this area

is

> because of the private academies and schools also in the area. For

> example EDEN services is HQ'd nearby, COSAC is in the county,

Rutgers

> and Princeton do research on autism and there are many different

> support groups.

>

> Rich

Thanks Rich for the info. I'll put it on my list to people. As for

us personally, we are looking for a warmer state. Thanks again.

C

[Guest guest]

> I'm not certain how someone with other insurance would have fared in

> our situation. It would depend if the facility participated with

> that insurance. I just know that Tricare doesn't do much in terms

> of " psychological evaluations " . My main issue with where we are is

> that there doesn't seem to be any sort of support system. My son's

> school is helpful, but their rules on how/when to do evaluations for

> occupational therapy is a little insulting. For instance, they

> offer the evaluation and subsequent therapy IF his issues are

> creating a problem in his classroom setting. My son is quite the

> little faker. Therefore, he will probably not qualify even for the

> evaluation. Services are available here, but only at one facility

> which happens not to participate with our insurance. At this point,

> I think I am hurting more for a support system than my son is for

> therpay alternatives.

>

Dear Dee,

I know it is a pain dealing with schools. We just had an eligibility

meeting for my son (3 yr reeval) and starting discussing the IEP. The

school's speech person said that since my son didn't score bad enough

in pragmatic language then he couldn't get speech services. I said

what about x, y, z (stuff that is pragmatics based but does not come

out on their tests). She said she saw that but services are driven

based on test scores -- no bad score, no services even though problems

are seen otherwise. ARRRGH! However, in talking to the school in

general all agreed that he needs help in this area, but it will come

from the counselor rather than the speech person. Also I see issues

that need to be addressed by an OT person and a PT person, and the

school sees them but they are either not bad enough or not school

related. The closest OT person (other than the school person) is 30

miles away. But I may see if I can get my son's doc to write a

prescript for PT so I can get more of the motor skills addressed and

if I'm paying (or insurance is paying) then at least I'll get more of

a say as to what is being addressed! Good luck!

[Guest guest]

I am jumping in and have not read all the messages so what I have to

offer may already have been mentioned but here goes!

My daughter did not qualify for pragmatic language therapy when her

tests as given by the school were used. So I had her babysitter who

she liked take her out for the afternoon and tape recorded her

conversation. I played it back in an IEP and asked them to tell me

what she was talking about. Of course they couldn't and we got

services for her. She was around 9 at the time. And " school related "

means recess, gym and any other assembly type of gathering where social

and motor skills are required to be able to participate. Sometimes

schools think only the classroom needs to have accomodations. Take

care....

I know it is a pain dealing with schools. We just had an eligibility

meeting for my son (3 yr reeval) and starting discussing the IEP. The

school's speech person said that since my son didn't score bad enough

in pragmatic language then he couldn't get speech services. I said

what about x, y, z (stuff that is pragmatics based but does not come

out on their tests). She said she saw that but services are driven

based on test scores -- no bad score, no services even though problems

are seen otherwise. ARRRGH! However, in talking to the school in

general all agreed that he needs help in this area, but it will come

from the counselor rather than the speech person. Also I see issues

that need to be addressed by an OT person and a PT person, and the

school sees them but they are either not bad enough or not school

related.

[Guest guest]

>

> I am jumping in and have not read all the messages so what I have

to

> offer may already have been mentioned but here goes!

>

> My daughter did not qualify for pragmatic language therapy when her

> tests as given by the school were used. So I had her babysitter

who

> she liked take her out for the afternoon and tape recorded her

> conversation. I played it back in an IEP and asked them to tell me

> what she was talking about. Of course they couldn't and we got

> services for her. She was around 9 at the time. And " school

related "

> means recess, gym and any other assembly type of gathering where

social

> and motor skills are required to be able to participate. Sometimes

> schools think only the classroom needs to have accomodations. Take

> care....

>

>

>

> That's a good idea. But in our situation, mostly everyone at the

team has heard him make comments that aren't right socially. They've

seen it for themselves. But since it didn't come up on their

testing, the observations apparently don't count. Or maybe it just

means that the one person cannot give services (the speech teacher),

but another person can (the counselor).

ARRRRG

C

[Guest guest]

They are just working the budget (money) in their favor. Just like the school

is concerned and advocates for the way they spend their money. We have to be

strong and advocate for our children and say what our children need. If they

heard your child's speech and it's a concern, I wouldn't think they have to

negotiate " who " would work with your child. " the counselor or speech teacher "

sounds like they are trying to be conservative with their services. Outch...As

a parent, if we don't speak up and we say nothing. that is exactly what we get.

Put your request in writing for your child to get speech, tell them to put their

answer in writing as to if he/she is going to get it. At the IEP, if they don't

provide your child with speech, tell them you want it documented that you

requested speech for your child due to your child needing it. If they still

Deny your child of speech, ask them, who in state ed call I call for help? see

what they say then... Good Luck

littleweatherman <littleweatherman@...> wrote:

>

> I am jumping in and have not read all the messages so what I have

to

> offer may already have been mentioned but here goes!

>

> My daughter did not qualify for pragmatic language therapy when her

> tests as given by the school were used. So I had her babysitter

who

> she liked take her out for the afternoon and tape recorded her

> conversation. I played it back in an IEP and asked them to tell me

> what she was talking about. Of course they couldn't and we got

> services for her. She was around 9 at the time. And " school

related "

> means recess, gym and any other assembly type of gathering where

social

> and motor skills are required to be able to participate. Sometimes

> schools think only the classroom needs to have accomodations. Take

> care....

>

>

>

> That's a good idea. But in our situation, mostly everyone at the

team has heard him make comments that aren't right socially. They've

seen it for themselves. But since it didn't come up on their

testing, the observations apparently don't count. Or maybe it just

means that the one person cannot give services (the speech teacher),

but another person can (the counselor).

ARRRRG

C

[Guest guest]

>

> They are just working the budget (money) in their favor. Just like

the school is concerned and advocates for the way they spend their

money. We have to be strong and advocate for our children and say

what our children need. If they heard your child's speech and it's a

concern, I wouldn't think they have to negotiate " who " would work

with your child. " the counselor or speech teacher " sounds like they

are trying to be conservative with their services. Outch...As a

parent, if we don't speak up and we say nothing. that is exactly

what we get. Put your request in writing for your child to get

speech, tell them to put their answer in writing as to if he/she is

going to get it. At the IEP, if they don't provide your child with

speech, tell them you want it documented that you requested speech

for your child due to your child needing it. If they still Deny your

child of speech, ask them, who in state ed call I call for help? see

what they say then... Good Luck

>

Thanks, C

[Guest guest]

Subject: Re: ( ) States to Move to with Aspie Child -- TX,

NM, AR

We just had an eligibility

meeting for my son (3 yr reeval) and starting discussing the IEP. The

school's speech person said that since my son didn't score bad enough

in pragmatic language then he couldn't get speech services. I said

what about x, y, z (stuff that is pragmatics based but does not come

out on their tests). She said she saw that but services are driven

based on test scores -- no bad score, no services even though problems

are seen otherwise. ARRRGH!

That is not true. They cannot determine services based on one test score.

They are obligated by law to use a variety of evaluation instruments to

determine the needs of the child.

As for the pragmatic testing, it seldom does work well that I have seen! I

don't even know why it is used at all. I requested it for my 9 yo at his

last MFE and he scored at age 14 on it. Lol. He can actually give the

right answers as he's been taught but implementing those in the given

situation was NOT happening. The ST knew that and said so and he has been

getting his ST now in the regular ed classroom, to his benefit. She can

prompt him to ask question or participate or whatever it is he is not

getting. We are now going to use verbal and visual prompts next year and

slowly fade the verbal prompting so that he can start reminding himself

using lists and visual cues.

At any rate, the school is wrong about having to score poorly on a test.

The testing gives us a picture of a specific piece at a specific time. It

should also be followed up with a report based on watching him during the

day to see how he is doing. Both those reports plus information from

teachers who deal with him daily and you, who also deal with him daily,

would be considered by the entire IEP team to decide if he needs help in

this area or not.

Roxanna

[Guest guest]

>

>

> Subject: Re: ( ) States to Move to with Aspie Child -

- TX,

> NM, AR

>

> We just had an eligibility

> meeting for my son (3 yr reeval) and starting discussing the IEP.

The

> school's speech person said that since my son didn't score bad

enough

> in pragmatic language then he couldn't get speech services. I said

> what about x, y, z (stuff that is pragmatics based but does not come

> out on their tests). She said she saw that but services are driven

> based on test scores -- no bad score, no services even though

problems

> are seen otherwise. ARRRGH!

>

> That is not true. They cannot determine services based on one test

score.

> They are obligated by law to use a variety of evaluation

instruments to

> determine the needs of the child.

>

> As for the pragmatic testing, it seldom does work well that I have

seen! I

> don't even know why it is used at all. I requested it for my 9 yo

at his

> last MFE and he scored at age 14 on it. Lol. He can actually give

the

> right answers as he's been taught but implementing those in the

given

> situation was NOT happening. The ST knew that and said so and he

has been

> getting his ST now in the regular ed classroom, to his benefit.

She can

> prompt him to ask question or participate or whatever it is he is

not

> getting. We are now going to use verbal and visual prompts next

year and

> slowly fade the verbal prompting so that he can start reminding

himself

> using lists and visual cues.

>

> At any rate, the school is wrong about having to score poorly on a

test.

> The testing gives us a picture of a specific piece at a specific

time. It

> should also be followed up with a report based on watching him

during the

> day to see how he is doing. Both those reports plus information

from

> teachers who deal with him daily and you, who also deal with him

daily,

> would be considered by the entire IEP team to decide if he needs

help in

> this area or not.

>

> Roxanna

>

Roxanna,

My private evaluator did just that -- listed his test scores then

said however, he needs x because this is what I saw. The school did

the same test scores and didn't say anything about what they saw

otherwise in their report. From my understanding, the school is

going with the school's report, not the private report. So what can

you do other than filing for dp?

Anyway, they did not yet say they weren't going to provide pragmatic

speech services. They said any pragmatic services would have to be

provided by the counselor instead of the speech therapist.

C