OK, Minnesota department of health finally sent today their grant of $300,000 to HRSA for the state implementation to assure early screening, diagnoses and services for all children throughout the state.
Initially, as I stated in previous blog – MDH’s child and maternal health only wanted to use more generic and useless words of yes we will follow CLAS guidelines and go through yet another mainstream agency.
Let’s dig this deeper, CLAS (culturally and linguistically appropriate services) mean that families are suppose to get information in a manner they understand. This means, if someone does not read or write, then they should get such information in a way they can comprehend. This means for a new immigrant community much like previous immigrants that came to America – not everyone is able to read or write even in their own native language. Therefore, Yes – it is the responsibility of the state health department to make sure they distribute autism health information in a way families can understand it. There are those with small minds that would say (well this is an educated society and everyone should read) Are you kidding me?
Minn has #48 education gap for minorities, most children of color are not able to read or write at grade level and these are children that were born here. But we are now talking about parents who migrated here from war countries with little education system, so YES – the state health department has a moral responsibility to support these autism families that it has neglected for years.
At any rate, after intense and long negotiations with MDH’s CMH with the help of state medicaid agency and education dept and the Governor’s wonderful policy adviser (I can’t say enough good things about Lauren) – there will be $70,000 allocated for minority based communities to outreach to those families as well as rural autism families. Awesome!
As a minority advocate – I know the need is so much greater, but Rome was not built in a day and this is a good step forward in the right direction of eliminating autism disparity.
In addition, ICI will finish learn the signs and act early material and will distribute it in a manner that Somali autism families can understand it. And, yes that means they will do it ORALLY.
I would like to thank everyone that supported equality and fairness from the gate, especially Governor Dayton’s office, commissioners and assistant commissioners of DHS and MDE agencies and Council of Black Minnesotans. We could have not done this without your support. We also thank HRSA for their technical assistance and receptive guidance. We need to have better autism policies so that minority families are not always fighting with tooth and nail for every little services.
God Bless!
Idil – Somali Autism Mom & Minority Advocate