Ontario Autism Program spend now nearly $1B, advocates hope it makes dent in waitlist

PC MPP Michael Parsa attends Question Period at Queen's Park in Toronto on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

TORONTO — A new infusion of cash for the Ontario Autism Program in the recent provincial budget will bring annual spending to nearly $1 billion, money advocates hope will go directly toward core therapy for children.

The Ontario Autism Coalition says it welcomes the new $189 million, but worries it will not make enough of a dent in the wait list for core therapy, which includes applied behaviour analysis, speech language pathology and occupational therapy.

Advocates say the wait to access those services is now five years and figures obtained through freedom-of-information requests show that growth in the number of families seeking services is outpacing the number of families being enrolled and receiving funding.

Michael Parsa, the minister of children, community and social services, says the “vast majority” of the new funding will go toward core services.

Advocates have also been calling for non-monetary ways to make the program more efficient, including simplifying an annual determination of needs process, but Parsa was non-committal.

NDP critic Alexa Gilmour says the government needs to revamp the program in a way that gets the most number of children into the core therapies they need.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 31, 2026.

Allison Jones, The Canadian Press