Talk of changes to the American Psychiatric Association's DSM-V criterion for diagnosing Autism Spectrum Disorders has a lot of people fired up recently. In this clip from CNN, Nancy Grace feels making the APA's proposed changes, "...will limit special education and services to children in need." Nancy goes on to question the role of future government funding in these proposed changes and how American children will be affected. She boldly states, "This is wrong!" We know that many of you - the families and professionals who live and/or work with children and young adults currently classified as having an Autism Spectrum Disorder - must have an opinion...how do YOU feel about the proposed changes?

MSN Health - HealthDay News: Can Low Birth Weight Raise Autism Risk? As was released online in advance of publication in an upcoming print issue of the journal Psychological Medicine, data from the Swedish Twin Registry's Child and Adolescent Twin Study indicates that smaller size was associated with greater risk. Read more HERE.

Philadelphia - A young girl with Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome was denied a life-saving kidney transplant [at least in part] due to her intellectual disability last week. Read more HERE. What are your thoughts?

Via Fox News: "A 9-year-old autistic boy who misbehaved at school was stuffed into a duffel bag and the drawstring pulled tight, according to his mother, who said she found him wiggling inside as a teacher's aide stood by." Further, according to the story, "In Kentucky, there are no laws on using restraint or seclusion in public schools, according to documents on the state Department of Education's website." Read more HERE.

Via PRNewswire - Last Friday Senator Bill Harkin (D-IA) introduced a new federal bill - The Keeping All Students Safe Act - to protect school children from dangerous, sometimes deadly, restraint and seclusion practices and techniques. From the press release issued by the National Autism Association: "It's estimated that over the last five years, more than 200 students, many with disabilities, have died due to seclusion and restraints being used in schools."