1. School Age Subcommittee Massachusetts Autism Commission

2. School Age Subcommittee Areas of Focus Family Supports Education Healthcare

3. Family Supports Individual family supports Availability of home support services and trained personnel Need for building respite capacity Information and training about best practices/interventions/methodologies Expansion of mental health services Awareness of cultural barriers to accessing services, need for outreach Inclusion/community supports Increasing community awareness and understanding (of the range of behaviors, skills, limitations across the Spectrum) Building capacity for range of service needs (both professionals and community non-professionals) Availability of properly-trained personnel

4. Healthcare Access to Diagnosis Number of providers in MA are not meeting demand for diagnosing children in a timely manner. Personnel prep is critical. Access to Ongoing Treatments Medical professionals need to be trained to accurately recognize signs of Autism Stakeholders need assistance pursuing benefits of ARICA legislation Providers should be encouraged to pursue fields that diagnosis individuals with Autism and focus on ongoing treatments for the ASD population Medical Home AAP encourages but funding is an issue. Interagency collaboration is required for this to be successful Autism Law Increase personnel prep for providers regarding Autism Waiver and ARICA. Accountable care organizations Mental Health/Neuropsych Not enough providers (doctors) are available to treat the mental health needs of those living with ASD Interface between medicine and education

5. Education Accessing information regarding the range of services within the educational domain and about services outside of the public schools Improvement in the consistency and availability of services across communities and school districts There is a need for behavior supports sensitive to the range of skills across the spectrum Improvements in regular education teacher training