Alpaca Health matches San Antonio families with independent BCBAs you can meet by name on this page. Get in-home ABA therapy across Bexar County, from Stone Oak to Alamo Ranch to Converse, or telehealth anywhere in Texas. We accept Medicaid and private insurance, we do not run a waitlist, and most families know their coverage and match options within days.
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 San Antonio
Sarah Liberty is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who has worked in the field of behavior analysis for more than ten years, supporting children, teens, and adults across clinic, home, and community settings. She earned her Master's in Applied Behavior Analysis and spent eight years as an RBT before becoming a BCBA, giving her a strong foundation in both direct care and clinical decision making.
Book a consultationView profile
Moriah Burton is a fun-loving Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) with a deep passion for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and for helping children reach their fullest potential. Through Burton Behavioral Play and Growth Center, she believes meaningful progress begins with joy, connection, and genuine care.
Book a consultationView profile
Lupe Castaneda is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who has worked in the field of developmental disabilities for over 29 years. She began her career as an Adapted Physical Education Specialist in the Arlington ISD and became an Autism Specialist and Behavior Analyst after attending the University of North Texas in Denton and earning her BCBA certification.
Book a consultationView profile
Ethan Brewer is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who has spent more than ten years supporting children and teens with autism in both home and clinic settings. He earned his Master's in Applied Behavior Analysis from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology and currently serves as a subject matter expert for the Behavior Analyst Certification Board.
Book a consultationView profileIn-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 during signup. Most San Antonio families start in-home, and telehealth reaches any family in Texas the same week.
In-clinic is BCBA-dependent: Alpaca Health does not run clinics in San Antonio, but some independent BCBAs see children in their own clinic space.
Every setting includes the same team, and we verify your insurance and Medicaid before sessions start. School-day support runs through in-school ABA therapy. Just getting started? Read what to do after diagnosis.
We accept most insurance providers and handle verification, prior authorization, and paperwork.
Don't see your plan? Check all accepted insurances
Most San Antonio children on Medicaid are enrolled through managed care. Three things to know before you call any provider:
- The plan name matters: in Bexar County the card often says Community First Health Plans or Superior HealthPlan, and that plan is who authorizes ABA therapy. Have the card ready.
- Not sure which plan your child has? We can sort that out with you during signup.
- Ask the Medicaid question first: some of the largest ABA providers in the San Antonio market do not accept Texas Medicaid, and others take it only at select locations.
Alpaca Health accepts Medicaid and confirms your exact benefits, whichever plan your child has, before you commit to anything. For what families actually pay under each type of coverage, see ABA therapy costs in Texas.
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 San Antonio
ABA therapy requires a medical autism diagnosis before insurance or Medicaid will authorize it, so this step comes first. In San Antonio, the right evaluation route depends on your child's age, your insurance, and how your family prefers to work.
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 insurance and Medicaid require, and families can start the evaluation and the BCBA match at the same time.
Start free diagnosisNonprofit and hospital systems
The Autism Community Network runs multidisciplinary evaluations that can take four to eight hours and require a referral faxed from your child's doctor. University Health offers autism services through its Institute for Public Health, and UT Health San Antonio evaluates through child and adolescent psychiatry.
Private and telehealth practices
Developmental and behavioral pediatric practices evaluate children and teens using tools like the ADOS-2, and some offer testing in English and Spanish. A smaller set of telehealth practices tests over video, mostly for teens and adults.
How to choose and what to expect
- Ask about ages: confirm the practice evaluates children your child's age.
- Ask about coverage: confirm it accepts your specific insurance or Medicaid plan.
- Ask about referrals: some centers require a referral from your pediatrician first.
- Prefer Spanish? Ask directly, since availability varies by practice.
- Join more than one list: waits vary widely, so take the first opening. The San Antonio Community Resource Directory (SACRD) keeps listings of local evaluation programs.
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 San Antonio
Alpaca Health does not operate a clinic in San Antonio, and we will not pretend otherwise. In-home ABA therapy means your BCBA comes to you, so our service area follows where our clinicians live and travel. Telehealth covers every Texas address.
Where in-home matching reaches
In-home matching reaches across Bexar County and the surrounding metro.
If your neighborhood is not named
Ask anyway. In-home availability depends on where our BCBAs are based in a given month, and telehealth reaches everywhere in Texas, so no San Antonio family is out of range.
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.
Early Childhood Intervention services for children birth to 3 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 local residents, including mobile crisis teams.
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.
Does Medicaid pay for ABA therapy in Texas?
Yes, Texas Medicaid has covered ABA therapy since February 2022 for members under 21 with an autism diagnosis. The harder problem in San Antonio is finding a provider who takes it, since several of the largest do not. Alpaca Health accepts Medicaid, so start your match here.
Who can diagnose autism in San Antonio?
Local routes include the Autism Community Network, which runs multidisciplinary evaluations and needs a doctor's referral, University Health through its Institute for Public Health, UT Health San Antonio through child and adolescent psychiatry, and developmental pediatric practices.
Alpaca Health offers an insurance-covered ADOS-2 evaluation with no waitlist, and the result counts as the medical diagnosis insurance and Medicaid require.
