Government Funding for GPS Tracking for Autistic Kids Proposed
8 Jul 2014Parents of autistic children may have better peace of mind soon with GPS monitoring of their child’s whereabouts. As we previously reported, approximately half of children with autism wander off.
In Utah, a project is underway to potentially provide GPS tracking devices to the parents of vulnerable autistic children. Government funding will need to be needed and it is only intended for parents that choose to use the system. Parents in need will work with local law enforcement agencies to apply for the funding from the The Byrne Grant Program.
Children and adults with autism have a tendency to wander off. People with autism, as well as those with Alzheimer’s and dementia, are prone to wandering and can often go much further than they originally intended. It causes panic and anxiety once they realize they don’t know where they are, and that turns into an even more dangerous situation.
In a lot of these cases, the child is found unharmed, but in others, it has been fatal. With the case of a boy named Steven, it took authorities 16 hours to find him after he had wandered off. They believe if Steven’s parents had been monitoring him with a personal GPS tracking device, he would have been found much sooner.
It doesn’t just benefit the parents and children with autism, but the public as well. There is decreased manpower needed to track down children that wander, which saves taxpayer dollars and frees up the police to work on other cases. These children can be tracked in an hour or less since the device gives their exact location, including up-to-date movements.
Right now it is not only funding needed for the devices themselves, but the local police department also needs funding, which is going to be provided by The Byrne Grant Program. This program pays for GPS tracking devices for families that have autistic children.
With the GPS tracking device, parents can look at a map that shows the location surrounding their child. There are markers that move when the child moves, so they can be sure they made it to school and also see if they wander off and go outside the designated location. An alert sounds based on the location the parent sets on the device, and they can contact police right away if this happens.
The Salt Lake City Police Department already works with The Byrne Grant Program, and are currently adding GPS devices to other programs they are involved with.
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