Alpaca Health matches Omaha families with independent BCBAs for ABA therapy, from Benson and South Omaha to West Omaha and Elkhorn in Douglas County. In-home care depends on a provider serving your address, so tell us where you live and we will check. We verify your Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska, Aetna, Cigna, TRICARE West or Heritage Health benefits before you commit to anything.
Clinically reviewed by
Samantha Ridout, M.Phil., BCBA, LBA-NYS· BACB certification #1-22-57709 · Last updated August 2026
Accepted insurance
Nebraska BCBAs on Alpaca Health
Patricia Nguyen, MBA, BCBA, LBA, is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst with five years of experience in the ABA field, and you are welcome to call her Patty. She is dedicated to providing quality care that helps children and their families thrive.
Book a consultationView profileABA therapy options for Omaha families
In-daycare and in-school ABA: therapy at daycare or school where the facility and your plan allow it
Virtual ABA therapy: telehealth parent coaching and BCBA sessions, where your plan covers them
Autism evaluations: ADOS-2 diagnostic assessments where available, coverage verified first
Parent training: regular family guidance sessions with your child's BCBA, where your plan covers them
Which setting fits your family? In-home ABA therapy is available wherever a local provider serves your area, so tell us your address and we will check. Virtual ABA therapy depends on your plan. Nebraska Medicaid pays for parent coaching and some BCBA supervision by video, but day-to-day therapy must happen in person.
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 BCBA who has availability 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 ABA therapy
We introduce you directly to your provider, and they take it from there. Most families begin within a few weeks, with in-home ABA therapy or a telehealth session where your plan covers it.
We accept most insurance providers and handle verification, prior authorization, and paperwork.
Don't see your plan? Check all accepted insurances
Alpaca Health accepts the plans shown above and confirms your benefits first. Omaha families on Nebraska Medicaid use a Heritage Health plan, separate from private insurance: Molina Healthcare of Nebraska, Nebraska Total Care or UnitedHealthcare Community Plan. That plan reviews ABA requests before therapy starts, a step called prior authorization.
What Alpaca Health's data shows about ABA care across our network
Every number below comes from the sessions, claims, and prior authorizations that partner clinics ran on Alpaca Health between August 2024 and August 2026, across every state we serve. It describes families served by those clinics, not the US ABA market.
Families who owed nothing
69.5%
Share of families nationally whose settled claims carried no patient responsibility. Medicaid plans usually cover it by design, while commercial plans carry deductibles and copays.
Alpaca Health partner-clinic caseload, Aug 2024 to Aug 2026. 896 families across 77 clinics.
Median owed per hour of therapy, commercial plans
$2.71
Patient responsibility owed per delivered hour for families on commercial plans nationally. About four in ten owed nothing at all. Middle half of families: $0 to $12.18.
Alpaca Health partner-clinic caseload, Aug 2024 to Aug 2026. 448 families across 64 clinics.
Independent practices on Alpaca Health
95
Practices run by clinician owners across the country, together serving about 1,400 children with roughly 148,700 hours of therapy delivered in the window.
Alpaca Health platform records, Aug 2024 to Aug 2026.
Median days to a payer decision
16.4
Days from the moment a partner clinic submits a prior authorization to the moment the payer approves or denies it. Middle half of requests: 10 to 26 days.
Alpaca Health partner-clinic caseload, Aug 2024 to Aug 2026. 1,082 families across 81 clinics.
How prior authorizations ended nationally
- Approved69.3%
- Withdrawn before a decision13.8%
- No authorization was needed9.8%
Share of prior authorization requests by outcome. Outcome groups with too few families behind them are not shown, so these shares do not add to 100. 891 families across 78 clinics.
Where therapy hours were delivered
- At home64.9%
- In a clinic office13.3%
- By telehealth8.9%
- At school7.3%
- Other settings5.6%
Share of delivered therapy hours by the place of service billed on each signed session note. Alpaca Health partner-clinic caseload, Aug 2024 to Aug 2026.
Families who had at least one telehealth session
72.4%
Telehealth is a small share of total hours nationally, and most families used it at least once. It fills gaps around illness and travel rather than replacing in-person work.
Alpaca Health partner-clinic caseload, Aug 2024 to Aug 2026. 783 families across 70 clinics.
These figures describe clients of Alpaca Health partner ABA clinics, on the payers Alpaca Health contracts with. They are not measurements of the US ABA market. A figure appears only when at least 25 families from at least 3 clinics sit behind it.
Start ABA therapy nowGetting an autism diagnosis in Omaha
Private insurance authorizes ABA therapy after a confirmed autism diagnosis. Nebraska Medicaid also covers ABA for some children with a developmental or intellectual disability, and before therapy starts it needs a diagnostic interview from the past 12 months, an ABA assessment and a treatment plan. Which route fits depends on your child's age and the plan printed on your card.
Start with Alpaca Health
We can check whether an Alpaca Health ADOS-2 evaluation is available for your family in Omaha and what your plan needs. An ADOS-2 is one part of an autism diagnosis.
Start your evaluationUnder age 3
Nebraska's Early Development Network evaluates infants and toddlers at no cost, and anyone can refer. Call Omaha Public Schools at 531-299-0242 or Nebraska ChildFind, for any district, at 1-888-806-6287.
Age 3 and up
Children's Nebraska runs an Autism Diagnostic Clinic at 8552 Cass Street. Your child's provider completes the referral, and the clinic then calls you to schedule. Questions go to 402-955-6570.
What Nebraska's autism insurance law requires
What covered plans must do
- Cover ABA: Plans issued or renewed since January 1, 2015 must cover screening, diagnosis, and treatment of autism for anyone under 21, and the law names applied behavior analysis.
- No dollar caps: Autism benefits cannot carry dollar limits, deductibles, or copays that are worse than those for a physical illness.
- Limited reviews: Outside a hospital stay, an insurer can review the treatment plan no more than once every six months unless your child's doctor agrees to more.
Where the law stops
- 25 hours per week: Behavioral health treatment, including ABA, is capped at 25 hours per week until age 21. Speech, occupational, and physical therapy do not count toward that limit.
- Plans it does not reach: Self-funded employer plans under federal ERISA rules and ACA individual and small-group plans are outside the mandate, so ask how your plan is funded.
- School sessions: Since July 1, 2026, independent providers cannot bill Nebraska Medicaid for ABA at school, so that care runs through the school.
- Diagnosis first: Treatment must be prescribed by a licensed physician or licensed psychologist for a child diagnosed with autism.
Local programs and organizations that support families alongside ABA therapy.
Free 24/7 phone, text, and chat support for anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Call or text 988.
Birth-to-three early intervention referrals and evaluations at no cost for families who live in the Omaha Public Schools district.
Nebraska's toll-free line for early intervention referrals from birth to three and special education questions for older children.
Serves most of Omaha, with special education for students with disabilities from birth through the school year they turn 21.
Public school district serving part of Omaha, with a special education department for IEP and evaluation questions.
Public school district serving part of Omaha, with a special services department for IEP and evaluation questions.
Public school district serving the Elkhorn area of Omaha, with special education for students from birth to age 21.
Public school district serving Ralston and part of Omaha, with services for students with disabilities from birth to 21.
Public school district serving Bennington and part of Omaha, with special education through its student services department.
Nebraska's 24-hour line for families worried about a child's behavior or mental health, with safety screening and referrals to local help.
Children's Nebraska evaluates children for autism with a multispecialty team after your child's provider sends the referral paperwork.
Nebraska Medicaid's free phone line for choosing or changing a Heritage Health plan, with choice counselors on weekdays.
Nebraska's parent training and information center in Omaha gives families free help with special education, IEPs and finding services.
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. BCBAs on Alpaca Health support the full pediatric age range, from toddlers until age 21, where coverage allows.
- Your child deserves more than short-term support. With Alpaca Health, 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 therapy shouldn’t be the norm. Alpaca Health connects families with independent BCBAs who are taking new families, and most families begin within a few weeks.
- 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.
How much does ABA therapy cost in Omaha?
It depends on the plan printed on your card. On a private plan, your deductible, copays and coinsurance decide what you pay, and Affordable Care Act marketplace and small-group plans in Nebraska are not required to cover ABA. Nebraska Medicaid covers ABA through your Heritage Health plan.
Check your Omaha coverage, and Alpaca Health will confirm what ABA therapy costs on your plan before you start.
Does Alpaca Health serve families in Omaha?
It depends on your address. The Nebraska BCBA featured on this page runs her practice in Lincoln, so we check whether a provider serves your part of Omaha. Tell us your address and plan, and we will say plainly what is available. Parent coaching by video is possible where your plan pays for it.
What do Offutt military families need before ABA therapy starts?
TRICARE covers ABA through its Autism Care Demonstration, authorized to run through December 31, 2028. Your child needs an autism diagnosis from a TRICARE-approved provider, and that provider sends a referral to TriWest Healthcare Alliance, the West Region contractor for Nebraska, for pre-authorization.
Active duty families also enroll in their branch's Exceptional Family Member Program and the Extended Care Health Option. Alpaca Health accepts TRICARE West.
Can Omaha Public Schools diagnose my child with autism?
No. A school evaluation decides if your child qualifies for special education and an Individualized Education Program, and it is separate from a medical autism diagnosis. Private insurance authorizes ABA therapy after a confirmed diagnosis.
Omaha addresses fall in six school districts, so families zoned for Millard, Westside, Elkhorn, Ralston or Bennington schools ask that district for the evaluation.
