Parents can work with health care providers to make sure that their children get the therapies that they need.

In February 2003, Wisconsin cut its budget and stopped the autism in-home program. This Lovaas program was being used by 1,007 children at the time. Nurses and parents and politicians worked together to restore funding for the in-home program. The Lovaas program is a type of Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) that has been shown to help children with autism. The Lovaas program teaches children with autism life skills by breaking them down into tiny steps (discrete trials) for eight hours per day for five to seven days per week. Other helpful programs include parent education, support, early intervention, school-based education, behavior management, and medical treatment.