The government has betrayed people with autism
by proposing unrealistic thresholds for who should be eligible for help
and by enshrining the poorest of care standards in law, say charities.
The
National Autistic Society said new criteria for those who should
receive social care completely "overlooks" autistic people who would not
be recognised as needing support. Many people with autism already
struggle to have their condition identified. Fewer than half of English
councils have any system in place for diagnosis, and some can be
particularly vulnerable to neglect and abuse, but councils would not be
obliged to help under the new criteria, says the NAS.
Other groups
have also expressed what one chief executive described as "total
horror" at the criteria put forward by the Department of Health to be
used by councils in England in deciding who should receive social care
and support. Charities including Age UK and the Alzheimer's
Society believe the bar is being set too high, leaving millions
vulnerable. A draft of the criteria was released this weekend ahead of
Monday's official launch.
Full Article on Guardian Society
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