Episode 305: Autistic Futures Under Austerity - No Roads, No Rights, No Care

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Recorded26 Jul 2025

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Today’s episode critiques a 2025 study by Zhang et al. comparing healthcare access for autistic youth in rural and urban areas, asserting that its findings, whilst seemingly modest, illuminate a systemic “collapse” of care rather than mere “gaps.” The author of the source article, Dr. Jaime Hoerricks, argues that current policies, particularly budget cuts categorising services like dental and speech therapy as “optional” under Medicaid, are not coincidental but a deliberate design leading to the functional abandonment of autistic individuals. Dr. Hoerricks highlights how care is increasingly becoming a subscription model, prioritising profit and “usefulness” over genuine need, with rural communities being systematically hollowed out and urban access becoming a hollow shell. Ultimately, she suggests that this erosion of healthcare is a form of “soft eugenics” and calls for community-led “lifeboats” and mutual aid as the state systematically withdraws support for those deemed unprofitable.Here’s the link to the source article: https://open.substack.com/pub/autside/p/no-roads-no-rights-no-care-autisticLet me know what you think.The AutSide is a reader-supported publication. To support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit autside.substack.com/subscribe

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