Members of the New Jersey Center for Outreach and Services for the Autism Community (COSAC) were present in Trenton as Gov. Jon Corzine signed a bill requiring the Department of Health and Senior Services and the Department of Human Services to develop an autism, intellectual and developmental disability course and curriculum for first responders, including emergency medical technicians, police officers and firefighters.
COSAC is the state’s sole autism advocacy agency, which is committed to assisting families, individuals and agencies concerned with the welfare and education of children and adults with autism spectrum disorders, according to a press release.
“Through its policy and government relations efforts, COSAC played an integral role in the drafting and passage of this important legislation for families,” COSAC Executive Director Linda Meyer said. “We were pleased to be there as the governor signed this bill into law, and COSAC will continue to advocate for the rights of individuals on the autism spectrum.”
Meyer was accompanied at the State House by COSAC Public Policy and Systems Advocacy Director Leslie Long, COSAC board member Barbara Strate, who addressed the crowd, and her daughter, Sarah, who has autism.
“Nothing is more important to me than the safety of my child,” Strate said. “This bill will ensure that we equip our responders with the specialized training they need to do their jobs and keep our loved ones safe.”
According to the press release, New Jersey has the nation’s highest autism rates, with 1 in 94 children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder; the national rate is 1 in 150.
The commissioner of Health and Senior Services and the commissioner of Human Services, in consultation with the New Jersey Fire and Emergency Medical Services Institute and the New Jersey State First Aid Council, will develop a training curriculum with the purpose of informing emergency responders of the risks associated with autism and other developmental disabilities, as well as providing instruction in appropriate recognition and response techniques concerning individuals with these disabilities.
The curriculum is to be incorporated into existing time requirements for training and continuing education of emergency responders.
“Training first responders to meet the needs of a person with autism has become an acknowledged need across the country,” Corzine said. “Autism is an invisible disability, one that is not always immediately recognized. That’s why it’s important that we supply our emergency responders with accurate information on how to treat and work with these individuals with special needs.”
Primary sponsors of the legislation in the Assembly were Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr. (D-Camden) and assemblymen Frederick Scalera (D-Essex) and Paul D. Moriarty (D-Camden and Gloucester). Sponsors in the Senate included senators Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) and Robert M. Gordon (DBergen).
“In an emergency situation, every second counts and the knowledge that a person suffers from autism can mean the difference between life and death,” Weinberg said.
Under the law, new emergency medical technicians, volunteers and paid firefighters and local police officer recruits are required to complete the training as a condition of certification.
EMTs, firefighters and police officers currently licensed in New Jersey are now required to complete the training as a continuing education course within three years of the bill’s enactment date, according to the press release.
“Gov. Corzine is keeping New Jersey squarely at the forefront of the national effort to clear roadblocks and raise awareness so individuals with autism can become independent and successful members of society,” Roberts said.