New Illinois law opens new pathways to getting autism diagnosis
WBEZ Chicago
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed a new law allowing qualified speech-language pathologists to diagnose autism in children under three enrolled in Early Intervention, addressing severe provider shortages that previously caused waitlists lasting up to two years. This legislative change, driven by Northwestern University's Reduce the Wait study, aims to streamline access to critical early intervention services for young children by expanding the types of medical professionals authorized to perform evaluations.
All articles from 19 August 2026. Summaries are AI-generated and may contain errors; the linked article is the authority.