Get Breaking News First
Receive News, Politics, and Entertainment Headlines Each Morning.
CHICAGO (CBS) For Michele and Peter Doyle, a trip to the doctors office with their daughter Caelan in 2006 changed their lives forever.
We kinda knew early on that there was something going on. There was a little bit of delay with her social interaction, said Doyle.
Caelan was diagnosed with autism at the age of four. She became part of the one in 68 children now affected. In fact, autism rates climbed nearly 30 percent between 2008 and 2010 and have more than doubled since the turn of the century, according to a new study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Its become an epidemic, said Doyle. As they looked for care for Caelan Doyle and his wife soon realized how expensive treatment and therapy can be, most not covered by insurance.
An autism family will spend a million dollars throughout the lifetime of their child being autistic on either therapies, medications, certain foods they give them, its very, very expensive.
Thats why they formed Rescue our Angels six years ago. It started out as a small grassroots effort with a few family members and friends, now its become an organization that has raised almost a half a million dollars for families affected by autism.
We are completely blown away at what this has become. Its the one thing that we really feel we are giving back. We feel so good that we are paying it forward and making a difference in the autism community.
Whats still unknown is the driver of that increase. Many experts believe the rise is largely due to better awareness and diagnosis rather than a true increase in the number of children with the condition.
See original here:
Chicago Family Makes Difference For Autism Awareness