Autism Group Wants Apology From Angle
Republican Accused Of Insulting Autistic Americans
The national Autistic Self Advocacy Network on Friday called for Nevada GOP Senate candidate Sharron Angle to apologize for a statement she made regarding health care and autism treatment.
Video of Angle speaking at a 2009 Tea Party rally surfaced this week, where the former state legislator slams Democratic health care policies.
“You’re paying for things that you don’t even need, they just the latest one is everything they want to throw at us is covered under autism,” she said, making air quotes around the word “autism.”
The Nevada Democratic Party posted a video of the speech on YouTube.
“We’re concerned by the Angle campaign’s claim that individuals and families 'falsely label other symptoms as autism' in order to take advantage of insurance mandates,” the ASAN said in a statement. “Lack of insurance coverage for habilitative services, such as occupational therapy and speech pathology services, is a barrier to the civil rights of autistic Americans both young and old.”
The controversy surrounding Angle’s comment has gained steam in the past 48 hours. A report in the Las Vegas Sun noted that a voter was ignored by Angle after asking her about the comment during a candidate forum on Thursday night.