With the recent passage of Act 62 last summer in Pennsylvania, many parents hoped to see improvement in the insurance process. Parents like Karen Misher have not yet seen those promises of help come to fruition.

Missouri Govenor Jay Nixon wants insurance companies to step up to the plate and start covering medically necessary, evidence based therapies such as Applied Behavioral Analysis therapies and others that have been proven to help improve the symptoms of autism. Many states have failed to support this bowing to lobbyists that tout rising insurance rates.

Featured on CBS News, the Oldham family in Virginia talks about the financial burden of autism and the struggle they have endured with being unable to pay for ABA therapy for their multiple children affected by autism.

The Michigan House committee has moved forward with a plan to implement insurance mandates paving the way for more children on the spectrum to receive therapies that have long been denied by insurance companies. However, the fight is not over. The bill is expected to meet opposition in the Republican controlled Senate.

Connecticut may soon be pushing through legislation that would require insurance companies to cover such therapies as ABA for children with autism. This, because of the hard work of many parents, community leaders, and state representatives has raised a tremendous amount of awareness to the financial plight of families affected by autism.

Governor Bill Ritter will soon be receiving a bill on his desk asking for assistance. Senate Bill 244 will require that insurance providers recognize autism spectrum disorders and that they cover treatments for those disorders until age 19. For children up to 8 years old a cap of $34,000.00 would be in place, and $12,000.00 for ages 9-19.

Legislators nearly unanimously passed the autism bill on the senate floor this week. Passing by a whopping 39-2 vote, many supporters thanked those who supported the bill paving the way for thousands of children to receive services.

Parents and families are on the Capitol steps today letting their voices be heard. They are showing up in numbers to show lawmakers that they are in need of the services that the state currently provides. The services for early intervention and special needs are facing proposed budget cuts

The Missouri Senate has thus far, stood behind State Bill 167 moving it along with relative speed. The bill has advanced on a voice vote and will now move to the Senate Governmental Accountability and Oversight Committee

Insurance industry regulators in California have thrown up roadblocks to thousands of families in the state. A ruling on Monday will force insurance companies to cover speech, occupational and physical therapies. However there will be no mandate to cover behavioral therapies like ABA and other social therapies to build social skills. This of course may put a greater burden on the state years down the road. Something that legislators in many states fail to realize.