Parents have every right to be concerned about news that the American Psychiatric Association is considering redefining autism.

The doctors may just be trying to get the official language in line with the science, but as a practical matter, a changed diagnosis can mean a loss of special services that the affected children need.

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Ginger Taylor of Brunswick has told The Portland Press Herald that her 10-year-old son, Chandler, who is autistic, is doing well in school, but she fears that other autistic children may lose out on services if diagnostic criteria for autism are changed. 2012 File Photo/John Ewing

This is especially terrifying for families of children who are now classified as high functioning and who can have the ability to develop vast knowledge of certain subjects, but such poor social skills that they cannot function in school without support.

These students are at risk of losing special services and being forced into settings where they may not succeed. The doctors say they will create a new category called “social communication disorder,” but admit that there may be some “lag time” before school districts and insurance companies recognize the new designation and provide services.

This is why parents of children who are now receiving services in public schools are concerned. School years go by quickly, and a student cannot be expected to wait while the bureaucracy catches up with reality. Families that lose compensation for services could face having to choose between paying exorbitant bills or wasting precious months of their children’s education.

Just because a child is relatively high functioning doesn’t mean that he or she is not in need of support. A student may be able to perform adequately on a math test, but not be able to navigate the complex social interactions required to function in a group.

What children learn about speaking and listening to their teachers and peers is every bit as important as the academic subjects they must learn. Just because social skills come naturally to many students, that doesn’t mean there aren’t students who struggle to master social interaction.

More kids than ever have been diagnosed with autism. Government data puts the count at 1 in 88, and it’s unknown whether that can be attributed to more liberal diagnoses or whether there is a true epidemic of the disorder.

Studying the conditions on the autism spectrum makes a lot of sense, and it is right for physicians to look at their language and determine what is really descriptive of what they are seeing. But when a child’s education and a family’s economic well-being are put at risk by a change in terminology, doctors should move with more caution.

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