I'm writing to urge your support and co-sponsorship of S.843, the Combating
Autism Act. This bill would expand the NIH Collaborative Programs of
Excellence in Autism, a major source of funding for autism research at Boston
University, and would make available $75 million in grants to states for autism
screening. These measures would lessen the huge social and economic costs of
providing lifetime care and support for people with autism.

I and my family are all too familiar with these costs of autism, because in
addition to being a neuroscientist studying autism I'm also a brother and an
uncle to two people with autism. My older brother John has never been able to
speak. My nine-year-old niece Marie hasn't even the social skills or language
skills of a child half her age. Both require intensive, full-time supervision.

S.843 is a wise investment for Massachusetts scientists and for Massachusetts
parents, and I hope that it will receive your vigorous support.