On the evening of September 26, Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) enjoyed hearing that the Combating Autism Reauthorization Act (HR 2005) was unanimously approved by voice vote in the U.S. Senate.  HR 2005 is a bill that Upton supports and helped shepherd through the Energy and Commerce committee.  The bill, which also passed the House of Representatives, last week, would fund federal autism research programs for another three years.

“Early detection can be a key element to mitigating the impact of autism,” Upton stated.  “The research into the causes and treatment of autism and other developmental disabilities needs to continue and this bill will do just that.”

The bill, which authorizes $693 million to fund research into the causes and treatment of autism and other developmental disabilities through 2014, now heads to the president’s desk for signature.