Alpaca Health vs Headstart Health
Alpaca Health and Headstart Health help BCBAs start and run their own ABA practice. They differ on how you are paid, when you are paid, who finds your clients, and whose software you work in.
Alpaca Health and Headstart Health compared
| Compared on | Alpaca Health | Headstart Health |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to start | Alpaca Health$0 | Headstart Health$0 |
| How your pay is set | Alpaca HealthSet rates per session, higher when you find the client | Headstart HealthA percentage of revenue |
| When you get paid | Alpaca HealthEvery 2 weeks, guaranteed | Headstart HealthYou collect from the insurer |
| How long credentialing takes | Alpaca HealthTypically weeks, under existing contracts | Headstart HealthIn-network setup handled |
| Who sources your clients | Alpaca HealthShared, referrals stay yours | Headstart HealthHeadstart Health sources |
| Who sources your RBTs | Alpaca HealthBoth post jobs, Alpaca Health runs payroll | Headstart HealthHeadstart Health recruits |
| Clinical software | Alpaca HealthBuilt in house | Headstart HealthNot specified |
| Who owns the practice | Alpaca HealthYou do | Headstart HealthYou do |
| States covered | Alpaca HealthTexas, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii, Michigan | Headstart HealthGeorgia, North Carolina, Indiana |
What you get with Alpaca Health
Alpaca Health runs the business side of the practice while you own it and do the clinical work.
How long credentialing takes
You cannot bill until you are credentialed, so the wait decides how long you go without income after leaving a salary.
Alpaca Health
You are credentialed under existing group contracts, including Medicaid, so you join contracts that already exist instead of applying for your own.
Headstart Health
Headstart Health handles getting you in-network as part of their onboarding.
When you get paid
Payment timing sets how long a new practice has to cover payroll out of its own pocket.
Every two weeks, guaranteed
Alpaca Health pays on a fixed two-week cycle rather than when the insurer settles.
Denials and clawbacks absorbed
If a claim is denied or delayed, Alpaca Health takes the loss. Your payout does not change and nothing is clawed back from your practice, so a rejected claim never reaches your payroll.
How Headstart Health handles it
With Headstart Health your practice collects payment, so your cash flow follows the insurer's timeline.
Who brings you clients and staff
Headstart Health sources most clients and recruits RBTs for the practices on its platform. Alpaca Health shares that work with your practice.
Where your clients come from
Headstart Health sources most clients and RBTs for the practices on their platform.
Alpaca Health shares the work
Alpaca Health runs national marketing and press to bring in leads, and your practice does its own local outreach, so the referral relationships you build stay with you.
Hiring RBTs
You post the role and so does Alpaca Health, on Indeed and other job boards. Once they start, Alpaca Health runs the payroll.
What software you use
You will work in this software every day, and support comes from whoever builds it.
Alpaca Health builds its own
Scheduling, data collection, session notes, billing, intake and payroll run in one system built and maintained in house. Payroll runs off the sessions your staff sign out, and AI session note and treatment plan tools are built in, with the clinical decisions left to you.
What Headstart Health provides
Headstart Health covers software as part of what it provides.
What happens if you leave or switch
The agreement with Alpaca Health runs one year and renews. You can end it with 90 days' notice at no cost.
Is there a lock-in or exit fee?
Alpaca Health does not ask for exclusivity, so you can work with another platform at the same time, and there is no termination fee. You keep your own LLC and brand throughout and are credentialed under contracts that already exist.
What happens to your families?
Clients you found stay with your practice. Clients Alpaca Health referred to you stay with Alpaca Health.
What happens to your staff?
Staff Alpaca Health recruited for you can come with you. There is no non-solicit on them.
Which states are covered
Where a company is credentialed today decides where you can bill. Alpaca Health is credentialed in all five states below.
Alpaca Health covers five states
Headstart Health hires in three
Why BCBAs choose Alpaca Health
You own the practice and the brand, and Alpaca Health takes no equity in it.
Paid every two weeks, guaranteed
Alpaca Health pays on a fixed cycle and absorbs denials and clawbacks, so a rejected claim never lands on your payroll.
Software built and supported in house
Scheduling, data collection, notes, billing, intake and payroll run in one system Alpaca Health builds and maintains itself.
Credentialed under existing contracts
You join insurance contracts that already exist, including Medicaid, across all five states Alpaca Health operates in.
If you are weighing other alternatives or thinking about switching, Alpaca Health is also compared with Finni Health, Tilly Therapy, Passage Health, Success On The Spectrum and Hi-5 ABA. Compare all major ABA platforms.
Frequently asked questions
Does Headstart Health take equity in my practice?
No. Headstart Health takes no equity, and neither does Alpaca Health. Both leave you owning your company and your brand. With Alpaca Health you are also paid every two weeks on a guaranteed cycle, so the practice you own has predictable cash flow behind it.
What does Headstart Health charge?
Headstart Health takes a small percentage of your revenue once billing begins. Alpaca Health pays your practice set rates per session from a rate sheet, and the rate is higher for clients you find yourself. You get the rate sheet for your state on a first call, so you can model your take-home pay before you commit to anything.
What happens to my insurance contracts if I leave?
You are credentialed under contracts Alpaca Health already holds, which is what makes it fast. If you leave, the clients you found stay with your practice and staff Alpaca Health recruited can come with you. There is no termination fee, and the agreement can be ended with 90 days' notice.
Do I have to use a particular clinical software?
Yes with both. Headstart Health covers software as part of what it provides. Alpaca Health builds and maintains its own, so scheduling, notes, billing, intake and payroll sit in one system and support comes from the team that wrote it.
Which company operates in my state?
Alpaca Health supports practices in Texas, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii and Michigan. Headstart Health hires in Indiana, Georgia and North Carolina. In any of Alpaca Health's five states you join insurance contracts that already exist there, including Medicaid.
Who brings in the clients?
Headstart Health sources most clients for the practices on their platform. Alpaca Health shares it, running national marketing and press while your practice does its own local outreach, which means the referral relationships you build stay with you.
How does Alpaca Health compare with other ABA platforms?
Alpaca Health is compared with Headstart Health, Finni Health, Tilly Therapy, Passage Health, Success On The Spectrum and Hi-5 ABA. Compare all major ABA platforms.
Start your own ABA practice with Alpaca Health
Alpaca Health sets up your legal entity, credentials you under existing insurance contracts including Medicaid, and runs billing, payroll and intake on software built in house. You own the practice and the brand, and Alpaca Health takes no equity.