Disabled again targeted for cuts

After a difficult year dealing with COVID-19 in Illinois, parents with children and adults with autism and all developmental disabilities, have had to handle and protect our kids from getting sick.

Now Gov. Pritzker after this long year for parents, is going back to the old state playbook of cutting funding for the FY22 budget for Human Services and guaranteed that autism and disability services will be part of the budget cuts.

Services for people with autism and all developmental disabilities have been a favorite speed bag for cutting funding that have kept the state ranked between 47th and 51st in the nation. COVID or no COVID, Services can't afford to be cut, but get cut because governors know that they can take advantage of our kids' problems with little pushback.

State legislators from both parties, each year say that they support people like my son and offer support during Autism Awareness month, but do not file bills to fix the problems in the state disability system, hoping an wishing that parent advocates don't come back the next year. They want the problems within this ever-increasing population to disappear in a puff of smoke. But people like my son and thousands of others are becoming adults and aging out into society. They are not disappearing, but increasing.

Plans have been around for years to reform the system. Don't make lawyers, judges and consent decrees; be better governors and state senators and representatives than what is in Springfield now. If not, then I hope that there will be another option to choose from for my son come next election that will finally serve the population's needs,

Mike Baker

Schaumburg