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A07976 Summary:

BILL NOA07976
 
SAME ASSAME AS S05534-A
 
SPONSORDe La Rosa
 
COSPNSRSepulveda, Crespo, Ortiz, Santabarbara
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Amd §13.42, Ment Hyg L
 
Directs the autism spectrum disorders advisory board to improve outreach to minority group members relating to children with such disorders.
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A07976 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A7976
 
SPONSOR: De La Rosa
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to directing the autism spectrum disorders advisory board to identify stra- tegies and methods to improve outreach to minority group members   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: To have the Autism advisory board make recommendations, improve outreach, and identify strategies for minority group members including African American, Latino and Asian Children. Create the autism and Afri- can American, Latino and Asian children's advisory council   SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Section 1.4: Directs Autism advisory hoard to identify strategies and methods of improving outreach and coordination of services associated with autism spectrum disorders for minority group members including African American, Latino and Asian Children Section 2: States this bill shall take effect sixtieth day after it shall have become a law.   JUSTIFICATION: The need to create the autism and African American, Latino and Asian Children's advisory council is clearly evident because of the statistics provided below: Clinicians are underdiagnosing autism in children from low-income minor- ity families, setting back the potential of the children benefitting from therapy. The Child Center of New York in Flushing, Queens, found that applica- tions for general counseling services have risen sharply in the past two decades, from 250 in 1993 to 1,700 in 2012. But Most of these inquiries are made by schools and not individual families. A study in 2011 titled Autism and African American Community found that even though the rate of diagnosis is similar throughout all racial groups, African American children will receive a diagnosis later than White children will. This will cause the children to be deprived from the services they need and lead to more intensive therapies compared to if they had been diagnosed earlier. Autism in minority children is being written off as "troubled kids", having lack of discipline at home or misdiagnosed with ADHD, mental retardation or organic psychosis. Even when taken to a professional to be diagnosed, some physicians will rely on stereotypes to guide their diagnosis of a child rather than rely on science and will not attend to the child's needs properly. These factors are leading to the child being misdiagnosed. Low-income minority families with low education have a harder time entering the early intervention system causing them to not be able to properly care for their children. Analyzing data collected in 2010 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found that children from high-income families are roughly 81 percent more likely to receive an autism diagnosis than those from low-income families. Many minority families are not able to afford specialist that would help treat their children and lack of transportation and even the lack of flexible work schedules continue to impede access to services for their children. These and many factors are issues that Autism and African American, Latino and Asian children's advisory council will help resolve through its collaboration with the NYS Office of Mental Health and the creation of mandated five year plans on its work.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New Bill   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS: None   EFFECTIVE DATE: This bill shall take effect sixtieth day after it shall have become a Law.
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A07976 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          7976
 
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                      May 23, 2017
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  DE LA ROSA  -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Mental Health
 
        AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in  relation  to  directing  the
          autism  spectrum  disorders  advisory board to identify strategies and
          methods to improve outreach to minority group members

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.    Subdivision  (c) of section 13.42 of the mental hygiene
     2  law, as added by chapter 469 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read  as
     3  follows:
     4    (c) The board shall have the following tasks and duties:
     5    (1)  Study  and  review  the  effectiveness  of  supports and services
     6  currently being provided to people diagnosed with autism spectrum disor-
     7  ders;
     8    (2) Identify legislative and regulatory activity which may be required
     9  to improve existing service systems that support people  diagnosed  with
    10  autism spectrum disorders;
    11    (3) Identify methods of improving interagency coordination of services
    12  and  maximize  the impact and effectiveness of services and agency func-
    13  tions; [and]
    14    (4) Identify strategies and methods of improving outreach and  coordi-
    15  nation of services associated with autism spectrum disorders for minori-
    16  ty group members including, but not limited to, African American, Latino
    17  and Asian children; and
    18    (5)  Such other matters as may be deemed appropriate by the members of
    19  the board.
    20    At the discretion of the chair, the board may consult with  stakehold-
    21  ers  for  the purpose of carrying out its tasks and duties in accordance
    22  with this subdivision.
    23    § 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth  day  after  it  shall
    24  have become a law.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10844-04-7
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