Now, a new Illinois law, prompted by research led by Northwestern University’s Megan Roberts, significantly expands who can legally deliver autism diagnoses in Illinois. It allows speech-language pathologists (SLPs) trained in autism diagnosis evaluation methods to diagnose the condition in children under age three enrolled in the state’s Early Intervention (EI) program. In Illinois, the number of SLPs far exceeds the number of specialized clinicians who are qualified and authorized to diagnose autism. The Reduce the Wait study found the autism diagnosis from trained SLPs and traditional physicians were the same in 93% of cases. For this solution to be actualized, however, the Illinois law needed to change.