California Appeals Court Strikes Down ABA Denial Rationale on April 23, 2014, allows for use of paraprofessionals for delivery of services:
"It appears that ABA, and similar behavior therapies, are somewhat unique among medical treatments in this respect," the court found. "While the treatment plan must be created, modified, and supervised by a professional, a paraprofessional may actually deliver the services." The lead organization, Consumer Watchdog, along with the California Association of Behavior Analysis (CalABA) and other organizations (the California Department of Insurance, Autism Speaks, the Behavior Analyst Certification Board, the Association of Professional Behavior Analysts, and Autism Deserves Equal Coverage) filed the lawsuit against the California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) held the position that unlicensed providers delivered care for years in California abiding by national certification standards and with no objection from the state, specifically citing the Regional Center and Department of Education systems. The DMHC claimed that it was unable to allow behavior services to be provided by unlicensed individuals. In the Appeal Court Decision, Certified Behavior analysts and those individuals receiving applied behavior analysis (ABA) services in California scored a major victory!

Click here to read more...