COVID-19 and Autism

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Mental Health, Wellbeing and Welsh Language – in the Senedd at 2:56 pm on 2 December 2020.

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Photo of Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Labour 2:56, 2 December 2020

Well, I can give you that assurance, Dawn. Just to make it clear, right from the beginning of the pandemic, when we were requesting people not to leave their homes, we did, right at the beginning, give exemptions to those people with autism because we understood that they needed to follow certain patterns, that they needed to get out on a regular basis. So, right from the beginning, we have been sensitive to those needs and, of course, as we now look forward to the vaccination roll-out, that's an example of where we need to just be aware that there's an area there that we need to think about, as to how people with autism are likely to respond. Guidance is being developed in preparation for the roll-out of that vaccine, and that information will be available on Autism Wales's website.

The other thing to be clear about on this is that we are very keen to make sure that people living with autism do receive that support, not just when it comes to vaccine roll-out, but also when it comes to more general interaction with the NHS.