The Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD) welcomes the newly enacted Consolidated Appropriations Act 2023, which builds on the federal government’s commitment to enforcing the Mental Health Parity & Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA). This law is critical to removing barriers to applied behavior analysis, the most effective therapy for people with autism.
The legislation includes language championed by the National Coalition for Access to Autism Services (NCAAS) to broaden the impact of federal efforts to determine whether health plans comply with MHPAEA, which prohibits discriminatory limits on mental health services, including ABA.
“CARD is proud to be a founding member of the National Coalition for Access to Autism Services (NCAAS), which has given us the opportunity to collaborate with other ABA providers to remove barriers to ABA,” said Jennifer Webster, CARD’s chief executive officer. “We welcome the most recent omnibus bill signed by President Biden, broadening the impact of efforts to enforce mental health parity.”
CARD has a longstanding commitment to lead public policy efforts that help our families access ABA. We are excited to see momentum at the federal level in the effort to remove barriers to ABA and other mental health services.