Pediatrics reports on recent research indicating that families of children with autism experience more financial problems, difficulty receiving proper care, referrals or family support services when compared to other families with children with disabilities.  This study calculated that nationally 535,000 children (ages 3-17) have disabilities with 5.6% of the children having autism. 

Reference:  Kogan, Michael D., Strickland, Bonnie B., Blumberg, Stephen J., Singh, Gopal K., Perrin, James M., van Dyck, Peter C.

A National Profile of the Health Care Experiences and Family Impact of Autism Spectrum Disorder Among Children in the United States, 2005-2006

Pediatrics 2008 122: e1149-e1158