University of Wisconsin researchers tell News 3 that we are in the midst of a health care crisis, and families with afflicted kids are flocking to Wisconsin.

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Contact Joel DeSpain Part I: Watch it Read It Part II: Watch It Read It Part III Watch It Read It Wisconsin Early Autism Project

Joel DeSpain reports in a special three-part series on how Wisconsin has become a real magnet for kids diagnosed with autism.

It's one of the reasons the number of autistic kids enrolled in public schools is up more than 200 percent in just five years.

We've gone from 850 to more than 2,500, and the biggest impact is right here in Dane County, DeSpain reported. Part I aired on "News 3 at Ten" on Nov. 19.

Had 6-year-old Brittney Duncan (pictured, left) been born to another family, she might be stuck somewhere in Texas, staring at walls, unable to speak.

Her mom told News 3 that as a toddler, Brittney was developing normally until age 16 months.

"We noticed that she kind of went downhill from there, and we kept losing contact with her," Glenda Duncan said. "It was like she was going into this dark, dark place, and I couldn't reach her anymore."

She was about to be diagnosed with autism.

"At that point, we got on the Internet to try to find therapies, and find out what can we do," Glenda said. "All the other doctors we had taken her to said, 'Put her in an institution, and get on with your life. There's nothing to be done.'"

That's when they found the Wisconsin Early Autism Project, one of the four clinics here Madison.

The Internet discovery came as the family's world, which at the time was anchored just north of Austin, Texas, was about to be rocked again.

Brittney's little sister Ashley was also being diagnosed with autism.

"At that point, after many tears and crying out to God, we had no choice but to move here," Glenda said.

Madison schools Superintendent Art Rainwater (pictured, left) says he understands their decision.

"Certainly, I can say, if I had a child who is autistic, I would be on the way here immediately," she said.

"It's kind of like, well, excuse the phrase, it's kind of like Mecca," Glenda said.

The reasons are many, including a committed school district and cutting edge research.

"The vast majority of kids with autism can be helped and can grow to achieve their full potential if they receive effective and appropriate intervention early enough," said Paul Shattuck (pictured, right), autism researcher at the Waisman Center.

Many families couldn't afford it, except for the fact that Wisconsin is one of only a couple of states paying for in-home therapy.

Ashley Duncan's therapy runs about $100,000 a year.

"Wisconsin should be very proud of that on the one hand, but taxpayers are saying, 'Oh my,'" said Jean Muckian.

Until, perhaps they learn that after this year, Ashley will require no more therapy while an untreated child with similar autism might require expensive care the rest of her life.

"We will drop her label," Glenda said. "She will be totally, pretty much recovered. She might have issues here, and there but we all have issues."

One issue plaguing Rainwater is budgetary. He's seen numbers of autistic kids in his district go from two in 1994 to 238 this year. The average cost for services per child is around $30,000.

"We're really in a situation now, and it's very unfortunate, in which we are looking at competing priorities around children and not only is that an unfathomable situation," Rainwater said. "In my mind, it's an untenable situation because every single one of those children is equally important."

His dilemma is likely to worsen, beside the magnet effect. UW researchers say the number of children being diagnosed with autism is growing at a rate of 25 percent a year.

"It's going to sneak up on us, you know this growing population is exploding," Shattuck said. "I think it's a public health crisis. There's this growing number of people who need services, and we are not devoting resources to increasing the availability and quality of these services to meet the growing demand."