ABA therapy industry news, trends, and growth strategy
Plain-English analysis of what is happening in the ABA therapy industry, and what it means for how your clinic markets, hires, and grows. No jargon, no hype.
Congress Is Reading ABA Billing Records. What Every Clinic Owner Should Check First.
The House committee that oversees employer health plans just demanded twelve categories of billing records from an autism therapy provider, going back to 2020. The letter is public, and it doubles as a checklist. If a payer, an employer plan, or a reporter asked you the same twelve questions tomorrow, could you answer them?
ABA Therapy Statistics 2026: 40 Numbers, Traced to Their Primary Sources
Most ABA statistics you'll find online trace back to another blog, which traces back to a third blog, which cites nobody. We went to the primary sources — BACB, CDC, JAMA Pediatrics, federal Medicaid data — for 40 numbers on the state of the field. Along the way we found three widely-repeated stats that don't survive contact with their sources.
ABA Billing and CPT Codes in 2026: The Complete Sourced Reference (and What Changes January 1, 2027)
On January 1, 2027, the entire ABA code set changes: six new Category I codes, every code from 97151 to 97158 revised, and 0362T and 0373T deleted. The AMA approved it in September 2025 and the details are still confidential. Here is exactly what is confirmed, what isn't, and every current code with its official descriptor.
ABA Lead Generation in 2026: Why Referrals Alone Won't Fill Your Schedule
Pediatricians still send 42% of ABA referrals — which means a single retiring doctor or a payer exit can gut your caseload. Meanwhile ~75% of families spend months on a waitlist and quietly vanish before intake. Lead generation isn't buying more clicks; it's owning demand you control and converting the families already raising their hands.
Best ABA Practice Management Software (2026): An Honest Comparison for Clinic Owners
The software you run your clinic on decides how much time your BCBAs lose to admin, how fast you get paid, and how hard it is to leave. We compared the seven platforms ABA owners shortlist most in 2026 — real pricing, real review scores, and the honest tradeoffs.
A Rate Cut Is Not a Margin Problem. It's a Volume Problem.
Nebraska cut direct ABA therapy 48%. New York drove the technician rate to $14.45. When the rate falls but the payer stays, you need more clients just to hold revenue flat. That turns a reimbursement crisis into a marketing problem — and marketing is the part you can actually control.
ABA's 403% Reckoning: Why Proving Outcomes Is Now Your Best Marketing Asset
The data that ended ABA's growth era is the same data that hands independent clinics an opening. When payers and parents reward proof over volume, the clinic that can show progress wins. Here is how to make your outcomes story your strongest marketing asset.
The ABA Payer Shakeout Has Started: What the Optum Exit Means for Your Clinic
Optum cut ties with a national ABA provider in June 2026, triggering layoffs and a scramble for families. The lesson for every clinic owner: if one payer can sink your caseload, your growth plan and your risk plan are the same plan.
How to Build a Referral Network for Your ABA Clinic
Referrals from pediatricians, diagnosticians, and school teams are still how most families find an ABA clinic. The clinics that fill their caseloads fastest are not waiting for those calls to come in.
The Private-Pay ABA Opportunity: How to Reach Families Medicaid Left Behind
Medicaid cuts and contract terminations are displacing thousands of ABA families. The clinics that reach them first are the ones that have built marketing for private-pay clients — here is what that looks like.
Parents Are Arriving Skeptical: How ABA Clinics Win Trust in 2026
Families now research you with their guard up, shaped by fraud headlines and a louder debate over ABA itself. Here is what cautious parents are really looking for, and how to earn their trust before they pick up the phone.
The ABA Industry's 2026 Reckoning: What It Means for Your Clinic
Fraud audits, Medicaid cuts, the Arizona layoffs, and a 5x BCBA shortage are reshaping the field. Here is what actually changed in 2026, and why trust just became your most important marketing asset.