Ontario is increasing its funding for autism services by $120 million, the government announced in its recent budget, and while advocates say the new money is welcome, thousands of children will still be unable to access treatment.

This brings the total autism program in Ontario to more than $780 million, a significant amount even within the province’s $214 billion budget, but it will not come close to meeting the demand.

The Progressive Conservative government has tried several times either to modify the program or to overhaul it entirely – as the previous Liberal government did – but in the time it took to roll out the latest version, the demand for services caused the waiting list to grow.

Alina Cameron, chair of the Ontario Autism Coalition, said the new funds are a great step forward, but the autism community still has many questions.

She added, “There are currently over 60,000 children waiting, and this program, in its current form, will not help the majority of children.” “And while it is a welcome increase, how much can we celebrate when there are still so many children waiting?”

This number is the total children and youth enrolled in the program, and many of them have received some form of support, although most of it has been through one-time funding or the school entry program. What many families are seeking are core clinical services, such as applied behavior analysis.

Monique Taylor, the New Democratic Party critic, said the $120 million is not enough.

She continued: “We know it is a patchwork plan. They need to go back to the drawing board and make sure children get the services they need, when they need them.”

When Minister of Children, Community and Social Services Michael Parsa took over the file last year, ministry officials told him in his transition briefing that the program’s $667 million budget would only serve about 20,000 children in core clinical therapies.

Documents obtained by the Canadian press through a freedom of information request show that at the end of 2023, around 17,000 children were enrolled in core services, although fewer than 14,000 of them had actually received funding to purchase those services.

Tuesday’s provincial budget says the $120 million “will support the government’s commitment to enroll 20,000 children and youth in core clinical services.”

Cameron, from the Ontario Autism Coalition, pointed out that this language is somewhat problematic.

She said, “We had the impression that last year’s budget size, according to the transition document provided by Minister Parsa, was sufficient to get 20,000 children to the door of core services.”

Cameron wondered whether the new budget means that more than 20,000 children will now receive core services, or that the $667 million budget was ultimately not enough to help 20,000 children.

Parsa did not clarify these details in an interview, but said the new investment shows the government is committed to supporting those families.

He said, “Our commitment remains the same in making sure every child, every youth, every family receives the support and services they need.”

The government is still working on adding more capacity within the treatment system, so that when families get funding there are enough service providers to assist them.

Parsa said, “We will do everything we can to make sure support is available.”

The Progressive Conservative government’s relationship with the autism community has been tense, especially under its first minister Lisa MacLeod. Families say the changes she made ruined the program.

The coalition then complained that under former minister Merrilee Fullerton, there was almost no communication and it was “like they didn’t exist.”

Cameron said this relationship might be on the path to change. She was pleased to see Parsa and his team reaching out to community members for input.

She added, “None of our questions have been answered yet, but we hope to get more clarity and transparency in the coming weeks or months.”

“We hope the office doors will open and we will be welcomed for a chat. And that is a good thing.”