Multiple ABA Therapy Waitlists: Smart Steps for Parents
Long ABA waitlist? A clinician explains how to join more than one, what to tell providers, and how to support your child while you wait. Tips from Blue Jay ABA.
If you are waiting for ABA, choosing to join more than one ABA therapy waitlist is a reasonable way to protect your child’s start date. Ask each provider about timelines, insurance, and what happens when a spot opens, then withdraw politely from the others once you accept. Blue Jay ABA can walk you through intake, authorization, and next steps.
Yes, You Can Join More Than One ABA Therapy Waitlist
Waiting is one of the hardest parts of starting ABA, and joining several lists is a sensible way to protect your child’s start date. Intake teams are used to families doing it, and doing it well takes a little organization.
Why Families Join Several Lists
Waits vary widely. In a 2023 survey of California caregivers, children who started ABA the previous year waited an average of three months, and about a third waited six months or more. Wait times in North Carolina and Colorado shift with staffing, region, and season, so I cannot give you a reliable average for either state.
Evaluations add another wait. The same California report cites an average of about 3.5 months to see a developmental behavioral pediatrician in 2023. Caregivers in a small Michigan survey also reported that their child’s behavior worsened the longer they stayed on a list.
CDC’s latest surveillance data estimate that about 1 in 31 eight-year-olds has been identified with autism, which helps explain why demand for services stays high. That is why I encourage families to keep options open.
Is It Fair to Providers?
Yes, when you are transparent. A mother once told me she felt guilty for calling five providers. I told her that her job is to find the right fit for her child, and ours is to make that choice easier. The courtesy we ask for is simple:
- Answer honestly if a provider asks whether you are on other lists.
- Respond quickly when a spot is offered, since openings are often held for a short time.
- Tell every other provider when you accept, so the spot can go to another child.
How to Manage Several Waitlists Without Losing Your Place
A few habits keep multiple lists from turning into a second job. They also make you a family that providers can place quickly.
What to Ask Each Provider
- What is the estimated start window, and what does it depend on?
- Which days and times are open, and do they fit your child’s week?
- Is care available at home, at school, or by telehealth, and is your address in the service area?
- Are you in network with your insurance, and who handles authorization?
- Can the assessment be scheduled before a spot opens?
- What support is offered while families wait?
- How will you contact me, and how long do I have to respond to an offer?
Keep a Simple Tracking Sheet
One page is enough. Here is what to record.
What to track | Why it helps |
Date you joined and who you spoke with | Lets you follow up with the right person |
Estimated start window | Helps you compare lists honestly |
Insurance verified (yes or no) | Prevents surprises at authorization |
Assessment scheduled or completed | Shows how close you are to starting |
Days and times offered | Shows which provider fits your child’s week |
Response deadline for an offer | Keeps you from losing a spot |
Be Ready to Say Yes Quickly
Keep your child’s diagnosis report, insurance card, school information, and availability in one folder. If your child does not have a diagnosis yet, ask providers what they need and consider starting an autism evaluation now. Our post on how to prepare for assessment explains what the first visit involves.
What Happens to Your Insurance Authorization When a Spot Opens
Joining a list costs nothing, but accepting a spot starts the insurance process. Knowing how it works keeps you from starting twice.
Authorization Follows the Provider
An ABA authorization is an insurer’s approval of a specific provider’s treatment plan, so it does not travel with your child. If you accept a spot with a second provider after the first has begun paperwork, the second will complete its own assessment and submit its own plan. Our authorization transfer facts post covers the details.
For children with Medicaid, federal EPSDT rules require coverage of medically necessary treatment under age 21, though the provider still requests the specific hours.
Choosing One Provider at a Time
Once you choose, tell your other providers and ask to be removed from their lists. If you want two providers for different purposes, such as home sessions with one team and school support with another, ask both teams how they would coordinate.
Our guide to multiple ABA providers explains when that arrangement works. Many insurance plans expect a diagnosis before ABA begins, so line up that paperwork early.
What to Do While You Wait for ABA Therapy
A waitlist does not have to be a holding pattern. Several steps can start now and will help whichever provider you choose.
Keep Evaluation and Early Intervention Moving
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends autism-specific screening at 18 and 24 months, so raise concerns at well visits. Children under three can be referred to the NC Infant-Toddler Program or Early Intervention Colorado.
Both serve children from birth to age three, and North Carolina’s program lists speech and occupational therapy among its services. If your child is three or older, you can ask your local school district for an evaluation. Speech therapy and OT are separate services, so your child does not need to wait for ABA to begin them.
Build Skills at Home With Parent Training
Parent training is one of the most useful things to do during a wait. Our ABA parent training services teach everyday strategies, and our post on why parent training is part of ABA explains the reasoning. Even before formal training, a few steps help:
- Choose the one routine that is hardest, such as leaving the house or bedtime.
- For a week, jot down what happened before, during, and after the hard moments.
- Teach one simple way to ask for a break or for help, and respond to it every time.
- Add a visual schedule so the day is predictable.
Hold off on plans to remove a behavior until a BCBA understands why it happens. Collecting notes is safe, and it gives your future team a head start. If your child was recently diagnosed, our list of questions after diagnosis can help you prepare.
Ask About Telehealth Coaching
Ask each provider whether virtual coaching or check-ins are available during the wait. At Blue Jay ABA, telehealth ABA includes coaching and progress check-ins that keep momentum going between in-person visits.
When a Long Wait Means It Is Time to Widen the Search
If estimates keep slipping, small changes to what you are asking for can open doors.
Flexibility Opens Doors
Ask whether home, school, and telehealth options are available, and share which days and times you can offer. In my experience, after-school hours fill first, so any daytime or early-afternoon availability can shorten the wait.
I have seen families in places like Concord and Gastonia move up simply by opening early-afternoon hours. You can also ask whether a smaller starting schedule is possible.
Insurance and Service Area Questions
Confirm that your plan is in network and who handles authorization. Blue Jay ABA works with Medicaid, Vaya Health, Trillium, Partners Health Management, Alliance Health, BlueCross BlueShield, Healthy Blue, Wellcare, Carolina Complete Health, and AmeriHealth.
Our team verifies benefits and manages the paperwork.
Our North Carolina team serves families in Charlotte, Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro, and Wilmington. Our Colorado team serves Denver, Aurora, Fort Collins, and Boulder.
How Blue Jay ABA Helps Families Get Started Quickly
Our goal is to shorten the distance between a first call and a first session. Blue Jay ABA offers home-based ABA, school-based ABA, and telehealth ABA across North Carolina and Colorado. A comprehensive ABA assessment shapes your child’s plan, and parent training helps you carry strategies into daily life. We also offer autism evaluation and diagnosis for families who need that first step.
If you are comparing lists, reach out to Blue Jay ABA. Tell us your availability and insurance, and we will give you a clear picture of next steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
These are the questions parents ask most while they wait.
Will joining several waitlists hurt my child’s chances?
No. Providers generally understand that families explore options. Stay honest, respond promptly to offers, and notify the others when you accept.
Do I need a diagnosis before joining a waitlist?
Many providers will add you early, but insurance usually requires a diagnosis before ABA starts. Policies differ, so ask each provider and consider scheduling an autism evaluation now.
How long should I wait before asking for an update?
There is no fixed rule. If you have not heard anything in several weeks, or the estimate keeps changing, call and ask for a realistic window.
Can my child get speech therapy or OT while on an ABA waitlist?
Yes. Those are separate services with separate waitlists, and starting them can support communication and daily skills while you wait.
Sources
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2025). Data and statistics on autism spectrum disorder. https://www.cdc.gov/autism/data-research/index.html
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2026). About Learn the Signs. Act Early. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/about/index.html
- UCSF Center for Excellence in Primary Care. (n.d.). Access to applied behavior analysis in California. https://cepc.ucsf.edu/document/access-to-applied-behavior-analysis-in-california-0
- North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). NC Infant-Toddler Program (NC ITP). https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/child-and-family-well-being/north-carolina-infant-toddler-program-nc-itp/nc-infant-toddler-program-nc-itp
- Colorado Department of Early Childhood. (n.d.). Early Intervention Colorado. https://www.eicolorado.org
- Autism Alliance of Michigan. (2022). Prevalence of delays to receiving behavioral therapy in Michigan: A summary of survey data. https://autismallianceofmichigan.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Waitlist-Survey-Report-Briggs-Peterson-2022.pdf
- Hyman, S. L., Levy, S. E., Myers, S. M., & Council on Children with Disabilities, Section on Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. (2020). Identification, evaluation, and management of children with autism spectrum disorder. Pediatrics, 145(1), e20193447. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31843864/
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. (n.d.). Early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment. Medicaid.gov. https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/benefits/early-and-periodic-screening-diagnostic-and-treatment/index.html
