A Vaughan mother is frustrated after waiting years to access the provincial autism program, with no clear end in sight.
Amy Jones says her six-year-old son Elijah has autism and speech apraxia.
“[It] is a neurological problem – it makes his brain and mouth not connect together,” she explains.
Elijah’s doctors say he needs speech therapy as soon as possible, but he has been unable to access the Ontario government program designed to help pay for that therapy – the Ontario Autism Program (OAP).
“They literally told me they could not give me a timeline of when [we] will get funding,” says Jones.
Elijah is one of more than 70,000 children across Ontario who are on the waitlist, according to End the Wait Ontario – a parent-led campaign that tracks wait times. They estimate an average wait of more than five years to get core clinical services.
The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services says the provincial government is investing money to reduce those wait times.
“That includes nearly $1 billion for the Ontario Autism Program (OAP) this year, with an additional $186 million in the budget for 2026. Since 2018, OAP funding has increased by nearly $674 million, or 232 per cent,” a spokesperson tells CityNews.
“The government has invested nearly $70 million since 2022 through the workforce capacity fund, supporting more than 350 projects to expand autism services.”
However it remains unclear when all that funding will translate into immediate services for children like Elijah. Meanwhile Jones is stuck with hefty bills to access the services he needs.
“[It costs] $125 to $175 for 45 minutes to an hour session. He needs at least once, twice a week to actually get somewhere but I cant afford it. Wish I could but I cant,” she says.
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