Autism Research Institute - What is Autism?

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January 2007

To President Bush and the US Congress:

With the passage of the "Combating Autism" bill, the Autism Research Institute (ARI) urges that consideration be taken for the appropriated funds to be allocated wisely and efficiently in order to provide the greatest value for the country.

With less than 5% of this bill being used to help individuals currently affected by autism, I urge Congress to use these important monies to fund research to develop and assess effective biomedical interventions, not just genetic research. At ARI we track and record thousands of autistic individuals around the country who are improving dramatically and often even recovering as a result of biomedical interventions developed in large part through research efforts of our institute. Given the enormous cost to society of caring for autistic individuals who do not become capable of living independently, as well as the family members who typically give up their careers to take care of them, it is imperative for the government to become much more involved in funding this therapeutic approach.

The work by ARI and its Defeat Autism Now! (DAN!) program has improved the lives of thousands of families suffering with autism. Many of these children have lost their diagnosis; and they are no longer need speech, occupational, physical and behavioral therapies.

ARI's efforts immediately help families with autism and ultimately lead to a lesser number of families requiring government funded services, we believe appropriating funds for biomedical research is both an important investment for families suffering with autism as well as the national economy.

Given

a growing number of scientific studies have shown a connection between autism and vaccines,
a growing concern by parents about the autism-vaccine connection,
and conflict of interest among researchers and government agencies attempting to show that vaccines are unrelated to the recent epidemic of autism,

I urge Congress to appropriate monies to fund research that will scientifically examine the possible role of vaccines in autism. These studies must be of the highest caliber. Moreover, it is crucial to ensure that there is no conflict of interest whatsoever between the researchers and the drug manufacturers or government agencies promoting the widespread usage of vaccines.

I urge Congress to take bold and direct measures to look carefully at whatever the real causes of autism may be, regardless of who or what may be to blame. It is time to be honest and change how the US government views the health of autistic children. The well-being of these children is paramount and should not be confused with who might be to blame, profit margins and rhetoric.

Stephen M. Edelson, Ph.D.
Director, Autism Research Institute
www.Autism.com