[FEAT BC Admin]

In this topic area, discussion is about the fight to secure Government funding for your A.B.A. treatment program. It is also the place to talk about your thoughts and ideas about how to establish new Government programs specifically designed for autism treatment.

This is the place to hear input from parents who have fought for funding and won, as well as those who have fought for funding and would like to share their horror stories. There is a tendency to not share success stories once funding is secured. Please fight that tendency. By sharing our experience, we all become stronger.

 

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—-By FEAT BC (Freeman) on Saturday, January 3, 1998 – 03:16 pm:

-Hi everyone!

These are some things to think about in your dealings with government to help you to obtain support for your child’s Autism Treatment Program. These are my personal opinions and do not represent those of FEAT of BC or any other organization.

Many of these observations are based on my personal experiences (and I believe it poetic justice to help every parent avoid being systematically abused by their social worker the way I was).

Good luck to everyone! (Let’s all pull back the curtain on the Wizard of OZ).

Sabrina

 

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How To Fight for Funding for Autism Treatment and Appropriate School Placement

1. Establish a Paper Trail

Always take notes, documenting major points of all conversations with government and school officials.

This includes casual, in person conversations with social workers as well as ALL telephone conversations. All key points of discussion must be written down in your notes including the date and time of the discussion. This includes what was agreed upon, as well as what was not agreed upon.

Then the notes should be used to write a letter recapping the substance and content of the conversation. This letter must then be mailed or faxed to the person with whom you had the conversation. In addition, a copy must be kept in your file (see section on the icci game).

Why?

It is important to formalize the interaction between you and Government officials. In addition, everyone is put on notice that they must closely adhere to their responsibilities, regulations and laws., Furthermore, they must then consider the paper trail you have created. This lets everyone know that the interaction can become public and that any abuses of power and authority can be formally appealed and/or publicized.

In other words, they canit use discretion unfairly under the cloak of secrecy.

2. Submit all Requests in Writing

All your requests for your child must be submitted formally in writing with a copy included in your file and a copy, if necessary, sent to their immediate superiors.

3. Set Deadlines for Action

All formal requests for action must have a reasonable deadline set for that action. If no action or response is received by the deadline you have set (two weeks for example), then you will interpret the lack of response as a formal declination (a formal NO) of your requests.

Why Set Deadlines?

When bureaucrats do not want to do something, they will stall by ignoring you and your request. (As an aside, in the study of the bureaucracy, this is known as ithe power to do nothingi). They can string you along for years. When you have determined that the person you are interacting with is not inclined to help you or is not dealing in good faith, then you must take the initiative and formally label his/her behavior as obstructionist and de facto as a declination (a NO to your requests). This allows you to move to the next level of authority on your timetable to present your case. This takes the power to do nothing away from the bureaucrat with whom you are dealing. Simple stated, a bureaucrat who stalls and does nothing becomes irrelevant (use your invisible spray) and you move on to the next level of authority.

How to icci?

A cc. is a copy of your letter sent to someone other than the person you are writing. You put the cc. at the bottom left-hand corner of your letter followed by 2 spaces and the name of the person or people to whom you want to send a copy of the letter.

Who to icci to?

Sometimes it is best not to icci at all, especially in the early stages of the relationship (for example, your first letter to a social worker requesting assistance). This gives them the opportunity to do the right thing and does not present you as an overly combative person. When you start to run into problems, it is a good idea to send the icci to the 2 immediate superiors of the person you are having problems with. We do not recommend icciing all the way up the chain of command, since you want to give them a chance to solve the problem at the local level.

Why send a icci copy?

The reason for playing the icci game is that you want your interactions with the official to be known to his superior and possibly to other organizations so that 1) their action or inaction becomes a matter of record and 2) the individual knows he is being monitored. This helps minimize abuses of power and authority and helps encourage the official to meet their obligations and do the right thing.

What is the sequence of letters?

Find out the chain of command of the particular bureaucracy you are battling.

TOP

Minister
Deputy Minister
Children’s Ministry’s local region chain of command, all the way down to the District Supervisor
and Social Worker
Contacts can be found at the government directory: http://www.dir.gov.bc.ca/

BOTTOM

Start at the bottom and climb. At the Regional Operating Officer (ROO) level (once you have been declined) you have to decide whether to jump up to the top, threaten and then go to the media, or both. A word of wisdom: DO NOT BLUFF. If you are not willing to go all the way, they will ‘smell’ this. You must be prepared to take it right up to the Minister and beyond.

Documentation from Experts:

In your arsenal to fight for your child, it is wise to get his/her pediatrician and/or psychiatrist to write a letter on your childis behalf. In addition, any other experts who know your child and are sympathetic to what you are trying to do should become involved.

When to hire a lawyer?

If money is not an issue, you can hire a lawyer when you get to the area manager level. Make sure that you have a paper trail so the lawyer has something to work with. Also, have the lawyer give F.E.A.T. of B.C. a call, and we will send him/her information that will help.

If money is an issue (as it is for most of us running autism treatment programs), you might want to hire a lawyer once you have been turned down by the Minister.

How to hire a lawyer?

The type of lawyer needed is a litigator, or trial lawyer. S/he does not need to be an expert in autism, or special needs; s/he needs to be experienced in suing governments, and enjoys being in court. Word of mouth is a good way to find a lawyer.

Topic

[Sabrina Freeman]

Hi everyone! I just finished watching a news story on the Toronto Global TV affiliate, Pulse 24, and I just have to share it with you.

Norrah Whitney, FEAT of Ontario, has done a marvelous job bringing the plight of our children to the Ontario Government. She organized a protest rally in the Ontario Provincial Legislature with approximately 100 families, with many of their children with autism in tow.

This is a news clip worth watching. If you are interested, please visit:

http://www.pulse24.com/News/Top_Story/20020624-018/page.asp

Be sure to click on "56k" or "high speed" to view the video with Microsoft player.

Great work Norrah!

Sabrina

[Deleted User]

Dave

Thank you for your opinion and advice.
Much appreciated.

Allison Lillies.

[Deleted User]

Dave

Thank you for your opinion and advice.
Much appreciated.

Allison Lillies.

[David & Lori DiSanto]

I agree that this is confusing. However, one of the ways that a person can work on a contract basis is if they have a reasonable chance of using these skills to do the same job for someone else at the same time. This is clearly the case for our line therapists…. and many of them do just that. If you have your therapist working 8 hours per day then maybe you've got to consider them an employee. BTW, I believe that "contract worker" and "self employed" are the same thing.

The way that we're going to approach it is simply the same as the way the MCFD approached it. Before all this new stuff we've had some of our line therapists paid out of our government funding. These people just went in and signed CONTRACTS with the MCFD for that portion of their payment. The MCFD had them as contract workers… not MCFD employees even though MCFD was paying them their wages. If MCFD didn't worry about it then neither are we.

We're putting every cent towards the program.

Dave.

[Deleted User]

I am having difficulty understanding the role of parents as 'employers' with regard to the new IEII funding rules. The package from the Autism Society states that a worker (therapist) is considered an employee if the employer (parents) set the required number of hours, supervise the work in any way, provide materials and set guidelines for the way in which the work is carried out. I would like to call my therapists 'contract workers' and set up contracts for each of them, therefore avoiding all the agravation of becoming an employer. The package from the Autism Society gave an interpretation of the government rules regarding 'employers' and 'self employed persons' but no mention of 'contract workers'. Are self employed and contract workers the same thing, or do they fall into different catagories and have different rules?
If indeed I do have to become an employer can I use the IEII funding from the govt. to cover my employers part of CPP and EI and WCB contributions? Of course I would rather spend this on my sons program, but I kind of like the idea of paying them with their own money, and using my cash to top up his program and buy the important things he needs.
Any opinions or info are greatly appreciated, either on the chat board or email caneng@columbiacable.net

Allison Lillies
Matthews Mom.

[Deleted User]

I sincerely hope people think about what anonymous is saying about being part of government research. If you think the BCOTA was brutal, look out because the FED's comissioned this one and the one question you should be asking yourself is " why would the Canadian Government have Byrna Seigal peer review an ABA content document, when she has as some would say a career in testifying against children needing ABA treatment in court. I have a binder sitting here on my floor, called the Anti Byrna Kit…It came from an American Lawyer and father of a child with Autism. I would say the Americans take this woman very seriously. It is almost three inches thick of her testimony at trials etc…its pretty much all there and I am thinking why…why this woman??? I have sent messages to all peer reviewers to read their peer review notes of the CCHOTA but no one has responded. It is rumoured that they are starting to use this document against families wanting ABA in the educational system in BC.
The Governments reluctance to provide ABA treatment is clear, years later we remain in court battles.
Just take time to think very seriously what they could use the "data" for.

[Deleted User]

In your parent information package is a
consent form for research to be done on the
children in B.C. receiving IEII. I have great
concerns about research paid for by the
government. They have been very biased
against ABA therapy in the past and would
love to prove that we don't need as many
hours, or that it's ineffective, etc.

Remember the BCHOTA report that was
commissioned by the government, written by
an"external research review" committee, tied
to UBC. This document was heavily biased
against ABA and was discredited in court. A
month after it was discredited in court , it was
passed out as "resource" material for doctors
and social workers.

I personally, do not trust this research project
and will not sign this concent form. Do not
feel you have to sign it. You will still get your
funding if you are not part of the research.

[Anna Aquino]

Thanks, Dave!

I'm all for clearer documentation. I'm just wondering if the "kind" of account ("in trust" vs. normal chequing) matters? There are so many detailed requirements which could be "hurdles" so to speak. LOL!

Also, at least now I know how to approach the hiring of my therapists. I will do the "contractual" route…unless there are other benefits doing otherwise.

Again, thanks for your reponse.

[David & Lori DiSanto]

Anna,

I spoke to the new manager for Vancouver/Richmond MCFD and she said that the point of setting up a seperate account was for clear documentation.
The idea being that all the money that comes into the account is from the government and all the money that goes out of the account is for treatment payments. That way when the government asks you to account for your spending you basically have to give the the bank statement to show where the money went.
If you have a seperate account for therapy payments then there's no sorting out what you spent on materials (picture cards, toys, reinforcers) from what was spent on therapists and consultants (this being what the government will pay for).

That's the scoop I got from MCFD.

As far as the other employee questions I did not address those specifically in my conversation with MCFD. However, I did look up the definition of "employee" and "contract worker". If the therapists can be defined as employees then you have to worry about maximum hours worked, vacation pay, workers comp, UIC etc. If they are working on a contract basis then you don't need to worry about any of this. Fortunately, from my reading, the therapists definitely can be grouped into the "contract worker" category in which case you basically cut them a cheque and let them worry about taxes, UIC, etc.

That's my take on it at least.

Dave

[Anna Aquino]

Just some questions regarding the interim funding:
It says to open a bank account "in trust" and in your child's name. And it should also be a chequing account with no bank card. (do they still do that? If so, which bank?)
Now the confusing part is this:
Most "in trust" bank accounts are saving accounts because the nature of this type of account (or so I was told by my banker) is to invest money that will be later on passed along to your child when they reach a certain age. Now, the money through the funding will certainly not be dormant and will be used in a regular basis and not as a "gift" for the future (literally, if you KWIM?)….so I don't see the point why it has to be "in trust". Would I be meeting their requirement by using an exisiting chequing account of mine, clearing it out and simply being disciplined about the funds? ***How are the others doing it?*** (*The question in every bewildered parents' mind*)
Second, they want a checking account. Great, makes sense. But in the child's name? Does this mean the cheques are written to the child? How come? When the contract is between one parent and the Ministry?

Another question is about hiring therapists…I am a bit confused about the hiring process. In the Parent Kit, there is a section about "Parents as Employers" and talk of filing for the usual legal stuff and when I asked HRDC regarding the hiring of students and minimum wages, I also happened to find out that you cannot hire anyone less than 4 hours a day. Even if you use them for only 2.5, their daily wage will be equivalent to 4 hours of work — no less. So are we hiring on a "contractual basis"? Is this what that means?This is all so new to me :)

So certainly, there is some confusion for me there…again, how do others do it? I guess with all this funding comes with a lot of resposibilities. Rightfully so BUT, I would appreciate enlightenment of some kind. Becasue as most of you know, its hard enough to manage a household and now a whole new endeavor….The Autism Society has made a great job simplifying the steps for us but the terms of funding raises a lot of questions from a simple mom like me :-)

Warmly,
ANNA

p.s. Sorry for the lengthy post or if the questions seem trivial. (the only stupid questions are these left unasked, eh?)

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