Alpaca Health vs Tilly Therapy
Alpaca Health and Tilly Therapy help BCBAs start and run their own ABA practice. Tilly Therapy runs its provider and billing side as 3Y Health. They differ on who finds your clients, whose software you work in, how many states each one covers, and whether ABA is all they do.
Alpaca Health and Tilly Therapy compared
| Compared on | Alpaca Health | Tilly Therapy |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to start | Alpaca Health$0 | Tilly TherapyOn request |
| How your pay is set | Alpaca HealthSet rates per session, higher when you find the client | Tilly TherapyOn request |
| When you get paid | Alpaca HealthEvery 2 weeks, guaranteed | Tilly TherapyWithin 2 weeks of each session |
| How long credentialing takes | Alpaca HealthTypically weeks, under existing contracts | Tilly TherapyCredentialing handled |
| Who sources your clients | Alpaca HealthShared, referrals stay yours | Tilly TherapyTilly Therapy sources |
| Who sources your RBTs | Alpaca HealthBoth post jobs, Alpaca Health runs payroll | Tilly TherapyNot specified |
| Clinical software | Alpaca HealthBuilt in house | Tilly TherapyBuilt in house |
| Who owns the practice | Alpaca HealthYou do | Tilly TherapyYou do |
| States covered | Alpaca HealthTexas, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii, Michigan | Tilly Therapy7 states |
What you get with Alpaca Health
Alpaca Health builds for ABA practices and runs the business side of yours.
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.
Tilly Therapy
Tilly Therapy handles credentialing and licensing for you and your team as part of 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 Tilly Therapy handles it
3Y Health, the provider side of Tilly Therapy, pays within two weeks of each session. With Alpaca Health a denied claim or a clawback sits with Alpaca Health rather than your payroll.
Who brings you clients and staff
Tilly Therapy sources clients through its own directory.
Where your clients come from
Tilly Therapy lists providers in a public directory and routes families to them through its own intake.
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
With Alpaca Health 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.
Tilly Therapy builds its own
Tilly Therapy providers work in the 3Y Health platform, which covers scheduling, billing and clinical data collection.
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
Tilly Therapy serves seven states
Tilly Therapy names these seven states on its site. Texas is the one state both work in.
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.
Built for ABA only
Alpaca Health builds one system for ABA practices, so scheduling, notes, billing, intake and payroll are shaped around how ABA is delivered and billed.
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 Headstart Health, Finni Health, Passage Health, Success On The Spectrum and Hi-5 ABA. Compare all major ABA platforms.
Frequently asked questions
Does Tilly Therapy take equity in my practice?
No. Tilly Therapy describes practices on its platform as provider-owned, and Alpaca Health takes no equity either. With Alpaca Health you keep your own LLC and your own brand throughout, and you are paid every two weeks on a guaranteed cycle.
What does Tilly Therapy charge?
Tilly Therapy takes a share of 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?
Tilly Therapy credentials you under contracts it holds, and so does Alpaca Health, which is what makes it fast. If you leave Alpaca Health, 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. Tilly Therapy providers work in the 3Y Health platform, which serves a range of medical specialties. Alpaca Health builds its own for ABA practices only, 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. Tilly Therapy serves California, Florida, Texas, Illinois, Georgia, New Jersey and Indiana. Texas is the one state both work in, and there you join insurance contracts that already exist, including Medicaid.
Who brings in the clients?
Tilly Therapy lists providers in a public directory and routes families to them. 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.