WEBVTT - Helping Autism's 'Invisible Population'

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<v Speaker 1>You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Messer and

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Quick Takes Tim Stinovic on Bloomberg Radio. Today is

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<v Speaker 1>the beginning of Autism Awareness Month. According to the CDC,

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<v Speaker 1>Autism effects and estimated one in forty four children in

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<v Speaker 1>the US today, and as we know, Tim impacts many

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<v Speaker 1>more if you take into account those families with a

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<v Speaker 1>member who has autism. Charlie Massimo is senior vice president

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<v Speaker 1>and financial advisor with the Wealth Enhancement Group of Voice

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<v Speaker 1>that our listeners know well. He also specializes in planning

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<v Speaker 1>for families that are impacted by autism. Charlie, it's good

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<v Speaker 1>to talk to you again. How are you. I'm great,

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for having me to get back. Yeah, thanks for

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<v Speaker 1>joining us on this. It's a really important one. And

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<v Speaker 1>I don't want to talk a little bit about um

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<v Speaker 1>the misconceptions here because I think, as you rightly point

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<v Speaker 1>out uh In in your materials that you you sent

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<v Speaker 1>our producer Paul Brennan, uh A lot of focus around

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<v Speaker 1>autism has really been about kids, as Carol mentioned, but

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<v Speaker 1>this isn't something that that stops with childhood. And when

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<v Speaker 1>we think about autism, we also have to think about

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<v Speaker 1>adults who are affected by it. Yeah, you know, as

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<v Speaker 1>a parent of two boys with autism, what I found

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<v Speaker 1>out is, you know, when they're when they're in school,

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<v Speaker 1>services were great. Once they age out eighteen or twenty one,

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<v Speaker 1>services kind of fall off a cliff and the onus

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<v Speaker 1>comes back on the family to care for them on

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<v Speaker 1>a daily basis. Not only not only day to day,

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<v Speaker 1>but the financial impact that that has on a family

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<v Speaker 1>for the rest of their life is pretty devastating for many,

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<v Speaker 1>you know. And it's interesting. I was just checking um

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<v Speaker 1>the CDC. I think was it just last year, Um,

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<v Speaker 1>Charlie that they put out an estimate on the number

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<v Speaker 1>of adults living with autism spectrum disorder in the US.

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<v Speaker 1>And I think it was like five point four UM millions,

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<v Speaker 1>about two and a quarter percent of the adults in

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<v Speaker 1>the US. So it's it's a significant and sizeable population.

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<v Speaker 1>Why is it that we haven't as a society you think,

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<v Speaker 1>stepped up more in terms of our awareness and acknowledgement, uh,

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<v Speaker 1>in doing more? Yeah, I think you bring up a

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<v Speaker 1>great point. And while it's changed, it's certainly I call

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<v Speaker 1>autism the the invisible population, because when you look at

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<v Speaker 1>a child or adult with autism. Sometimes it's really difficult

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<v Speaker 1>to tell if they actually have autism. And you look

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<v Speaker 1>at them and say, well, they're fine, and the and

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<v Speaker 1>the issue is they're really not fine. Um and and

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<v Speaker 1>your point. You know, one in fifty one and forty

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<v Speaker 1>five adults of autism, and it costs from from the

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<v Speaker 1>age of eighteen for the rest of their life. The

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<v Speaker 1>c d C also estimates it costs about one point

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<v Speaker 1>eight million dollars per family to care for an adult

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<v Speaker 1>with autism. And again, when you think of family that again,

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<v Speaker 1>how much one point eight million dollars is that from

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<v Speaker 1>child from childhood through adulthood. No, it's mostly most of

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<v Speaker 1>that cost is eighteen and after a cost about anywhere

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<v Speaker 1>from two point three to three point three million dollars

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<v Speaker 1>to raise a child with autism throughout their life, and

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<v Speaker 1>most of that again occurs after eighteen. And again the

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<v Speaker 1>issue is while they're in school. A lot of those

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<v Speaker 1>services that covet after school, a lot of after they graduate,

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<v Speaker 1>A lot of those expenses, you know, fall back on

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<v Speaker 1>the parents and those doctors and psychiatrists and programs that

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<v Speaker 1>are really good in this country or in New York,

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<v Speaker 1>A lot of them don't take insurances, it's mostly private

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<v Speaker 1>pay so so again, when you think of a family,

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<v Speaker 1>it's trying to prepare for their own retirement or plan

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<v Speaker 1>for a typical child. To then put an autistic child

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<v Speaker 1>on top of that, it becomes very difficult for these

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<v Speaker 1>families to plan throughout their life. So Charlie, what is

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<v Speaker 1>what do you do when you try to to specialize

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<v Speaker 1>and help plan for families who are impacted by autism?

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<v Speaker 1>How do you how do you help families financially cope

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<v Speaker 1>with this? I think the first thing is we have

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<v Speaker 1>to make them realize, you know what, this is life long.

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<v Speaker 1>And again we have to make them realize what the

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<v Speaker 1>true expense may be. And then I think we have

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<v Speaker 1>to help them plan in buckets. Again, you can't. The

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<v Speaker 1>biggest mistake I find families they commingle all their assets together,

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<v Speaker 1>their their own retirement assets, their typical child's assets for college,

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<v Speaker 1>and they plan in one bucket. And I think that's

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<v Speaker 1>the biggest mistake. I think you have to really plan

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<v Speaker 1>in buckets and carve out certain moneys and understand what

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<v Speaker 1>those costs will be for for these families and for

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<v Speaker 1>these young adults that again are going to need the

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<v Speaker 1>financial supports throughout their entire life. What's a typical family

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<v Speaker 1>that you that you work with in terms of figuring

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<v Speaker 1>out a plan, because I also do wonder, you know, Charlie,

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<v Speaker 1>that they're probably certain um families that have more means,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, and they obviously can probably more easily do it.

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<v Speaker 1>Then you're probably I would assume families that don't and

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<v Speaker 1>maybe they get more assistance from public assisians, but then

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<v Speaker 1>there's probably folks in the middle. Just got about forty seconds.

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<v Speaker 1>What's what's the typical family? Like, Yeah, I think again

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<v Speaker 1>again there is no really typical family when you deal

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<v Speaker 1>with autism. But I think what you have to realize,

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<v Speaker 1>and this is a misnomer, of adults with autism received

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<v Speaker 1>no governmental supports for housing, and housing becomes is the

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<v Speaker 1>big GETT issue because again most most adults live with

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<v Speaker 1>their parents until their parents die, and that becomes a

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<v Speaker 1>critical issue. So again housing is an issue that families

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<v Speaker 1>have to realize they're not going to get much governmental

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<v Speaker 1>supports for housing, so they really need to plan for

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<v Speaker 1>the expenses of housing for for for the rest of

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<v Speaker 1>their life, for their children. Charlie Massa, Most Senior Vice

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<v Speaker 1>president and financial advisor of the Wealth Enhancement Group. Thank

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<v Speaker 1>you so much for joining US. I know you're also

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<v Speaker 1>a founder of autism Communities. I do want to note Carol,

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<v Speaker 1>that US Autism Homes is having its first doggy Dash

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<v Speaker 1>in Southampton on Saturday, April nine at ten am. You

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<v Speaker 1>can go to u S Autism Homes dot org to

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<v Speaker 1>learn more and to register.