It was the famed American philosopher Kenny Rogers who once so famously observed, "You've got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them, know when to walk away and know when to run."

For Wayne and Robyne Rohde, the time has come to fold them. And one can hardly blame them.

The Rohdes, some of you may remember, are the parents of an autistic son named Nick. For a number of years they led the fight to enact state legislation - dubbed "Nick's Law" by its original author, state Senator Jay Paul Gumm of Durant - which would have required health insurance policies that cover diagnosis and treatment for autistic children.

Gumm originally filed the "Nick's Law" legislation in 2008; despite great public and editorial support throughout the state - and the fact that other states, including our neighbors Texas and Louisiana, had passed similar bills and still others were considering doing so - Republican leaders in the state legislature refused to hear or schedule a vote on the bill during that session.

In February of the following year - despite a call for passage by Gov. Brad Henry in his State of the State Address - Nick's Law was killed by the House Economic Development Committee less than three hours into its second day of session. An amendment aimed at reviving the measure garnered nationwide attention when, on April 27, 2009, Democrats in the Oklahoma House walked out of the chamber after the amendment was blocked by the House's Republican majority.

The GOP leadership - not known for their willingness to compromise to begin with - steadfastly refusedto accept responsibility for actions even members of their own party were decrying at the time. They were quick to blame the Democrats for "restrict(ing) our ability to legislate," when in fact it was those Republican leaders who worked so feverishly to keep the issue from coming to a vote in the first place.

Those same House Republicans tried to pass themselves off as being more caring about the issue by passing an autism bill of its own, increasing the number of autism therapists in the state. But Gumm quite rightly compared that action to "putting shingles on a house before you pour its foundation. It is backwards and doomed to failure. Without helping families afford the therapies, all the therapists in the world will be useless."

Through all the setbacks and disappointments Mr. and Mrs. Rohde persevered as best they could, hopeful that the misguided legislative leadership might have a change of heart and stop kowtowing to the special interests whose goal (a fact most of them apparently did little if anything to deny) was quite simply to kill Nick's Law.

And the Rohdes and those other families with autistic children who stood with them did manage to notch at least a partial victory this year, after the legislature agreed to a bill requiring insurance companies to cover the same illnesses for autistic children as they do for children without the condition. Previously, parents had been unable to secure insurance coverage for such ailments as asthma in their autistic children.

Granted, the bill fell well short of meeting the needs of the Rohdes and other families like them. But it was a step in the right direction - a far greater step than that represented by the GOP bill last year.

Even the most stalwart of crusaders, however, can only take so much. In time the emotional and financial burden of raising an autistic son - and not being able to accomplish the one goal that might make that burden even the slightest bit easier to bear - took its toll on Wayne and Robyne Rohde. So they've decided to fold and walk away.

Recently the Rohdes announced that they are leaving Oklahoma. They are moving to Minnesota, where they will be able to buy the kind of insurance that will allow them to afford autism treatment for their son in a home setting without forcing themselves into bankruptcy.

Insurance they might have been able to buy here at home, if only certain legislators had given a damn about doing the right thing for once in their miserable lives.

It's a sad day for Oklahoma. Sad because this family in the end saw no other alternative than to pull up stakes and leave their home in order to get their child the help he so desperately needs. Sad because they surely will not be the last who feel compelled to do so. Sad because it does not have to be this way.

Opponents of Nick's Law probably view the Rohdes' departure as a victory of sorts. They shouldn't.

I'm told Sen. Gumm has already announced his intent to file new legislation similar to Nick's Law next session. And I suspect those other Oklahoma families who will carry on the Rohdes' fight will now work that much harder to make their voices heard louder than before.

More power to them. Oklahoma has already turned its back on one family; let's not compound the tragic stupidity by turning our back on others.

(Copyright 2010 by John A. Small)