Amedore introduces legislation for first responder autism, developmental disability training

ALBANY – State Senator George Amedore has introduced legislation that would establish a training program for first responders when handling emergency situations involving persons with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities.
If approved, the measure would provide for training of emergency responders so that they could better recognize the symptoms and characteristics of people with developmental disabilities.
“Our first responders are trained to respond to a situation with a certain protocol, bus this may not always be the best way to interact with individuals with developmental disabilities,” Amedore said. “It is critical that our first responders have a working knowledge of autism, and the wide variety of behaviors individuals with developmental disabilities can exhibit in emergency situations.”
He said if a first responder is able to identify that a person may have a disability, “they can then respond in a way that best supports the individuals.”