Autism advocates seek passage of bill for proper care, inclusion

Autism advocates pose for a photo at the press briefing of the Autism Society Philippines ahead of the group’s Angels Walk for Autism this coming Apr. 26, 2026. (Courtesy: Gugma PR)

Autism advocates on Friday urged the House of Representatives to pass a bill that would provide people with this condition with needed care and support.

Current legislation aims to institutionalize access to services, strengthen coordinated support systems, and ensure lifelong inclusion for Filipinos on the autism spectrum.

At least 26 counterpart measures remain pending in the House Committee on Health as of this writing.

Autism Society of the Philippines (ASP) national spokesperson Mona Magno-Veluz emphasized that legislation from Congress could respond to their concerns in uplifting their community.

She explained that a separate bill in the Senate has already been approved, with the upper chamber’s version containing a framework of solutions to address autism.

“It does not include the details of it (the plan), but instead it provides a framework so that we can have a long-term, detailed, responsive, and flexible plan to address the needs of our community,” Magno-Veluz said in a press conference.

The ASP noted that 1 in 100 Filipinos are living with the neurodevelopmental condition, which hinders their abilities in speech, social interaction, and behavior.

“This bill will mandate all government agencies to have protocols in place so that when our community reaches out to them for a service, they will know what to do,” Magno-Veluz said.

The ASP also welcomed the initiatives by the Department of Health to train specialists under its developmental pediatrics program, with autism patients being served in public hospitals.

“We are always hoping that these efforts will exponentially grow in the number of trained and certified behavioral and developmental physicians. It (the training) means working closely with interventionists and our community so they can have a better prognosis,” Magno-Veluz concluded. — Rolando Ng III