OTTAWA, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Canada's highest court ruled Friday the British Columbia government can decide whether to pay for costly early treatment for autistic children.
The Supreme Court decision overturns two lower court rulings that had ordered the B.C. government to foot the bill for the treatment, the CBC said.
A group of parents had argued the treatment was medically necessary. They claimed that by refusing to pay for it, the province violated the equality rights of autistic children.
The government argued the treatment was unproven, experimental and not a medical necessity.
Four families who wanted the government to pay for a treatment known as Lovaas began the case six years ago. Developed by Norwegian Ivar Lovaas in the 1980s, Applied Behavioral Analysis is an intensive, early intervention therapy that can cost up to $60,000 a year.
