Argyle families work with Alpaca Health's independent BCBAs alongside families in Bartonville, Lantana, Northlake, Flower Mound, Corinth, and Highland Village. Your therapist partners with Argyle ISD on Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and accommodations, and sessions can happen at home, at school, at daycare, or through virtual sessions.
Clinically reviewed by
Samantha Ridout, M.Phil., BCBA, LBA-NYS· BACB certification #1-22-57709 · Last updated July 2026
Accepted insurance:
Meet the BCBAs serving Argyle
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In-school and in-daycare ABA: therapy integrated into your child's daily routine
Virtual ABA therapy: BCBA-coached telehealth sessions from home
Autism evaluations: insurance-covered ADOS-2 assessments
Parent training: twice-monthly Family Guidance sessions with your child's BCBA
Which setting fits your family? Tell us at signup and we will say plainly what is available at your address. Most Argyle families start with in-home ABA therapy, because a BCBA working in your kitchen and back yard sees the routines a clinic room never shows.
School and daycare hours are the other half of the day. Alpaca Health coordinates in-school ABA therapy with Argyle ISD once the district agrees to it, and the same arrangement works in daycare and community settings for younger children.
There is no Alpaca Health clinic in Argyle. Some independent clinicians in our network see children in their own space, so ask about in-clinic time during matching. Virtual ABA therapy reaches any Texas address in the same week and keeps parent coaching on the calendar when driving does not work.
We accept most insurance providers and handle verification, prior authorization, and paperwork.
Don't see your plan? Check all accepted insurances
Argyle sits in Denton County, which Texas Health and Human Services places in the Tarrant service area for Medicaid managed care, along with Hood, Johnson, Parker, Tarrant, and Wise counties. The plan name printed on your child's card decides who authorizes ABA therapy, and that name changes with the program.
- STAR Kids here runs through only two plans: Texas lists Aetna and Cook Children's Health Plan for the Tarrant service area, so have the card in hand when you call.
- Regular STAR runs through three: Aetna Better Health, Cook Children's Health Plan, and Wellpoint, so a child moving from STAR to STAR Kids can land with a new plan and a new authorization team.
- A CHIP card is not a Medicaid card: The same plan names appear on CHIP cards here, and CHIP does not cover ABA therapy, so check which program the card is for first.
- Ask the Medicaid question before you tour a center: Action Behavior Centers, which runs a center with an Argyle address, states on its own site that Medicaid is not currently accepted at its Texas locations.
Alpaca Health accepts Texas Medicaid and private insurance, and we confirm your exact benefits before you commit. For how the two coverage tracks differ, see Texas autism insurance coverage.
ABA therapy insurance and Medicaid in Texas
Texas has two separate coverage tracks for ABA therapy, and the rules change depending on which one you are on. Here is how each track treats ABA.
Whichever track your family is on, Alpaca Health verifies your coverage during signup, confirms what your plan requires, and matches you with a BCBA who works with it.
Related reading: ABA that accepts insurance.
Track 1: private and employer insurance
Texas law, Insurance Code Section 1355.015, requires state-regulated group health plans to cover autism screening, diagnosis, and treatment, including ABA therapy.
- Screening: plans must cover autism screening at 18 and 24 months.
- Timing rule: the diagnosis must be in place before your child's 10th birthday. Once it is, coverage has no upper age limit.
- Dollar limits: Texas sets no cap on ABA coverage under age 10. From age 10 on, a plan may apply an annual ABA maximum of $36,000.
- Self-funded exemption: many large employers self-fund their plans, which follow federal law instead. Ask HR whether your plan is fully insured or self-funded. Fully insured plans follow the Texas mandate.
Track 2: Texas Medicaid
Texas Medicaid has covered ABA therapy since February 1, 2022 through Texas Health Steps, its benefit program for members age 20 and younger. Your child needs an autism diagnosis to qualify.
- No dollar cap: coverage follows medical necessity, and the recommended hours are based on what your child needs.
- Prior authorization: it is required, and your provider prepares and submits that paperwork, not you.
- CHIP works differently: Texas CHIP does not cover ABA. It still covers other therapies, including speech and occupational therapy.
Getting an autism diagnosis in Argyle
Neither private insurance nor Texas Medicaid will authorize ABA therapy until a doctor or psychologist has made a medical autism diagnosis, so this step comes before everything else.
Argyle has no autism diagnostic clinic of its own. The closest routes sit in Denton, a short drive north, and the right one depends on your child's age, the plan on your card, and how soon you need an appointment.
Insurance-covered ADOS-2 with Alpaca Health
Alpaca Health offers a insurance-covered ADOS-2 diagnostic evaluation with no waitlist. The result is the medical diagnosis private insurance and Texas Medicaid require. Families can run the evaluation and the BCBA match in the same week instead of finishing one before starting the other.
Start free diagnosisUnder 3: Early Childhood Intervention
Early Childhood Intervention serves children from birth to 36 months, and in Denton County the program is delivered by My Health My Resources of Tarrant County, which covers twelve counties from its Fort Worth offices. Anyone can refer a child at 1-800-754-0524, and no medical diagnosis is needed first.
All ages: Denton's university and hospital clinics
The Woodcock Autism Assessment Clinic, run by Texas Woman's University with the UNT Kristin Farmer Autism Center, evaluates children 12 months through 18 years on Thursdays during the fall and spring semesters and accepts insurance and private pay. Cook Children's Psychology in Denton sees children ages 2 to 18 for autism and related concerns.
How to choose and what to expect
- Confirm the clinic evaluates your child's age: The Woodcock clinic takes 12 months through 18 years, and Cook Children's Psychology in Denton starts at age 2.
- Confirm the clinic is contracted with your exact plan: A practice that says it takes insurance may still not be in network with the plan printed on your card.
- Ask whether a referral is required: Cook Children's asks families to talk with their pediatrician first, and Argyle Pediatrics on US-377 lists developmental screenings among its services.
- Join more than one list: Waits at university and hospital clinics run long, so hold more than one appointment and keep whichever comes up first.
- Know what a school evaluation does: Argyle ISD and Denton ISD will evaluate at no cost, and that establishes special education eligibility rather than the medical diagnosis insurance and Texas Medicaid require.
How autism diagnosis works in Texas
Insurance and Medicaid both require a confirmed medical autism diagnosis before they approve ABA therapy. Where you start depends on your child's age.
Under age 3: start with ECI
Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) is the statewide program for children from birth to 36 months with developmental delays or disabilities. A delay of at least 25% in one or more areas can qualify your child.
- Anyone can refer: you, your pediatrician, or another caregiver can make an ECI referral. No doctor's order or diagnosis is needed.
- The evaluation is free: ECI is separate from school services, which begin at age 3.
Age 3 and up: two routes
- School route: under Child Find, districts evaluate children with suspected disabilities at no cost through a Full Individual and Initial Evaluation (FIE). It can qualify your child for special education and an Individualized Education Program (IEP), but it is an educational determination, not a medical diagnosis.
- Medical route: a developmental pediatrician, child psychologist, or psychiatrist diagnoses using structured tools such as the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS-2). This is the diagnosis insurance and Medicaid require.
- Use both: the school evaluation opens support during the school day, and the medical diagnosis opens therapy coverage. Appointments take time to get, so join both lists early.
Neighborhoods and communities we serve in Argyle
In-home ABA therapy means the BCBA drives to your house, so the service area follows where our clinicians live rather than where a building sits. Telehealth covers every address in Texas, and in a town of roughly 5,500 people that is often the difference between care starting this month and care waiting.
Where in-home matching reaches
- Old Town Argyle and the US-377 corridor: The center of town along US-377 and Old Town Boulevard, which covers most Argyle addresses inside 76226.
- East along FM 407: Bartonville, Lantana, and Flower Mound, the side of town closest to our Lewisville BCBAs.
- Southwest toward Canyon Falls: The Canyon Falls and Northlake side of 76226, continuing out to Roanoke.
- North toward Denton: Corinth, Highland Village, and Denton, where the closest autism evaluation clinics are.
Which school district serves your address
Argyle ISD covers the majority of the town, along with parts of Bartonville, Denton, Flower Mound, and Northlake. Denton ISD also lists Argyle among the communities it serves, so some Argyle addresses are zoned to Denton ISD instead. Northwest ISD covers part of neighboring Northlake and does not list Argyle at all. Your address decides which district runs a school evaluation and writes the IEP, so confirm that before you start making calls.
Recent Texas policy changes
Two Texas Medicaid ABA changes took effect in 2025, and both work in families' favor. Neither one cuts coverage.
April 2025: simpler renewal paperwork
Medicaid ABA runs on authorization periods: an initial therapy plan, then extensions roughly every 90 days. Effective April 1, 2025, Texas simplified the extension paperwork. The prescribing provider's signature is no longer required on 90-day extension requests, only on the initial plan.
Your provider files these forms, so the change you may notice is fewer delays between authorization periods.
September 2025: higher Medicaid payment rates
Effective September 1, 2025, Texas raised what Medicaid pays providers for ABA services. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) adopted the increase after a public rate hearing, and the current amounts live in the HHSC rate tables.
Payment rates shape your options. When Medicaid pays providers enough to sustain care, more of them can serve Medicaid families, and over time that can mean shorter waits and more choices near you.
Both changes build on a benefit that is still young. Texas Medicaid only began covering ABA in February 2022, the last state to add it, and the 2025 updates point toward a program that is settling in rather than pulling back.
How ABA therapy works through Alpaca Health
Four simple steps from your first form to your first session. No waitlists, no phone tag, no guesswork.
1
Tell us about your child
Start with our short intake form. You share the basics: your child's age, your availability, your insurance, and any autism diagnosis you already have. That is all we need to understand where your family is starting from.
2
We verify your insurance
After you submit the form, we verify your insurance and follow up within one business day to confirm the details. No long waits, no phone tag.
3
Get matched with the right provider
We match you with a licensed provider who has availability now, not months from now. Prefer someone specific? Tell us, and we will try to make it work. Either way, the fit is built around your child's needs and your family's schedule.
4
Start care the same week
We introduce you directly to your provider, and they take it from there. Most families have their first meeting or assessment within the same week, whether that is in-home ABA therapy or a telehealth session.
Local programs and organizations that support families alongside ABA therapy.
Therapy, case management, and family education for children birth to 36 months with developmental delays.
Public school district serving local families. Contact for IEP and special education accommodation support.
Free 24/7 phone, text, and chat support for anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Call or text 988.
24/7 mental health crisis support for Denton County residents, including mobile crisis outreach.
Why independent clinics matter
In-home ABA that fits your life
- The providers we work with bring therapy to you, wherever your child is most comfortable.
- That might mean home, daycare, school, or virtual sessions. Our flexible care model ensures that therapy integrates into your family’s daily routine, rather than disrupting it.
- Our network is made up of independent, local clinicians who prioritize collaboration, not control, so you stay in charge of your child’s care.
Support for the full pediatric age range
- Many ABA centers stop care when a child turns 8. Not us. We support the full pediatric age range, toddlers to age 21.
- Your child deserves more than short-term support. With Alpaca, they can build a long-term relationship with a provider who understands their growth over time and adapts care as their needs evolve.
- We also support your whole family with educational events and resources, including parent webinars, advocacy toolkits, and grant guides.
More care. Less wait.
- Waiting months for ABA shouldn’t be the norm. At Alpaca, we help families connect with the right provider in just a few days.
- We work exclusively with independent providers, which allows us to stay flexible and waitlist-free. That means faster assessments, quicker treatment starts, and the end of years-long waits.
- Ready to get started? We’ll handle the paperwork, help coordinate referrals, and walk you through every step.
Which Medicaid plans cover ABA therapy in Argyle?
Texas Medicaid has covered ABA therapy since February 2022 for members age 20 and younger with an autism diagnosis. Argyle is in Denton County, which sits in the Tarrant service area, so STAR Kids here runs through Aetna or Cook Children's Health Plan, and STAR runs through Aetna Better Health, Cook Children's Health Plan, or Wellpoint.
Finding a provider who takes the plan is the harder part. Alpaca Health does, so start your match here.
Where can my child get an autism evaluation near Argyle?
Children can get an insurance-covered ADOS-2 evaluation through Alpaca Health with no waitlist, and the result is the medical diagnosis insurance and Texas Medicaid require.
For other ages the closest clinics are in Denton. The Woodcock Autism Assessment Clinic evaluates 12 months through 18 years, and Cook Children's Psychology in Denton sees children ages 2 to 18. Children under 3 can also start with Early Childhood Intervention through My Health My Resources of Tarrant County.
Which towns near Argyle do Alpaca Health BCBAs cover?
Our nearest BCBAs are based in Lewisville, and they cover homes across 76226, Bartonville, Lantana, Northlake, Flower Mound, Highland Village, Corinth, and Denton.
Telehealth reaches any Texas address, so no Argyle family is out of range. Which clinician you get depends on who has openings the month you sign up, and we tell you that at signup rather than after you have filled out paperwork.
