I'm writing to urge your support and co-sponsorship of S.843, the Combating
Autism Act.  Your colleague Christopher Dodd in the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions is already a co-sponsor of this important,
bipartisan legislation, and support from you as ranking member of that
committee could be a critical boost.

This bill would expand the NIH Collaborative Programs of Excellence in
Autism, a major source of funding for ongoing autism research taking place
at Boston University.  It would also make available $75 million in grants to
Massachusetts and other states to develop systems for autism screening and
intervention.  By furthering early diagnosis and treatment and by enabling more
rapid progress towards scientific understanding and prevention of autism, S.843
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.  He cannot hold a job outside supported employment, and he requires
full-time supervision.  My nine-year-old niece Marie hasn't even the social
skills or language skills of a child half her age; she requires constant and
intensive supervision and this has prevented my sister from getting and keeping
a decent job.  We need to do better for families affected by autism, and we
need to work faster to understand the genetic and environmental factors that
produce autism.

S.843 is a wise investment for Massachusetts scientists and for Massachusetts
parents, and I hope that it will receive your vigorous support.  To add your
name as a co-sponsor, please contact Jim Fenton in Senator Dodd's office at
202.224.2823.