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What Is ABA Therapy?
The cornerstone guide: how ABA works, what it helps with, and honest answers to common criticisms.
Read itFamily Resources & Support
Autism family resources in Minnesota, gathered in one calm place: our plain-language guides, a glossary for the acronyms, and the state and community organizations that genuinely help. No email gate, no fluff.
Just had a diagnosis? Here is the path.
There is no race. Most families move through these steps over weeks, not days, and rarely alone. You can pause at any point and pick up where you left off.
- 1
Take a breath, and learn at your own pace
A new diagnosis is a lot to hold. You do not need to understand all of it this week. Start with one plain-language guide, and stop when you have had enough.
Start with: What is ABA? - 2
Understand the evaluation (the CMDE)
Minnesota opens EIDBI funding through an evaluation called the CMDE. It is less daunting than it sounds, and your child may already have part of what it needs.
How the CMDE works - 3
Check your coverage: the door is usually open
Most families assume they earn too much to qualify. Between Medical Assistance and Minnesota's TEFRA option, income is rarely the barrier it appears to be.
See how funding works - 4
Reach out, and ask before you commit
Intake, coverage checks, and paperwork can run at the same time, so therapy can start sooner. Nothing is binding until you decide it is.
Talk to our intake team - 5
Look after yourself, too
You are part of your child's support, which means you need support of your own. Minnesota's autism community can meet you wherever you are right now.
Find local support
Start with our guides
Written for anxious, time-poor parents at a 6th-to-8th-grade reading level, and clinically reviewed by a BCBA. Read them in any order.
Evaluation
The CMDE, Explained
The evaluation Minnesota requires for EIDBI: who performs it, what's assessed, how to prepare.
Read itFunding
EIDBI & Insurance
How Minnesota funds intensive therapy, which Medical Assistance plans we accept, and what families pay.
Read itEarly signs
Early Intervention
Signs worth acting on, why starting early matters, and what play-based therapy looks like for toddlers.
Read itVocabulary
Autism & ABA Glossary
Every acronym in one place: EIDBI, CMDE, BCBA, RBT, ITP, and the rest, in plain language.
Read itArticles
The Blog
Plain-language articles on therapy, funding, early signs, and family life, from our clinical team.
Read itQuestions worth asking any provider, including us
Choosing who works with your child is a big decision. These are good questions to ask any ABA clinic. If a provider cannot answer them clearly and without defensiveness, that tells you something.
- Are your programs designed and overseen by a board-certified behavior analyst (BCBA)?
- How are goals chosen, and how is my family involved in setting them?
- What does a typical session actually look like for a child like mine?
- How do you measure progress, and how often will you share it with me?
- Do you take our insurance or Medical Assistance, and what would our family pay?
- How do you support a child who is having a hard day?
- How do you make sure goals respect my child as an autistic person?
These are exactly the conversations our intake team expects. Ask us all of them.
The worries that make families wait
We hear the same fears often, usually from parents who waited longer than they wish they had. Here are honest answers, including where the criticism of ABA is fair.
“We probably earn too much to qualify.”
This is the most common reason families wait, and it is usually wrong. EIDBI is funded through Medical Assistance, and Minnesota's TEFRA option can open that door for a child with a disability no matter the household income. It is worth checking before you rule your family out.
How coverage works“Isn't ABA the harsh, make-them-normal therapy I read about?”
Some older ABA practice earned that criticism, and autistic adults have pushed the field to do better. We are direct about where we stand: the goal here is communication, independence, and safety, never erasing who your child is.
Read our honest take, criticisms included“My child might be too young, or we may have waited too long.”
Starting earlier tends to help, but the right first move is a conversation, not a cutoff. It is worth asking rather than deciding on your own that the window has closed.
About starting early“Asking about cost will be complicated, or I'll feel judged.”
A coverage check is a short, factual conversation, and it costs nothing. You can find out what your family would actually pay before you commit to anything at all.
Ask about coverage
Trusted Minnesota organizations
We send families to these organizations regularly. They are the real infrastructure of autism support in Minnesota, and none of them pay to be listed here.
Autism Society of Minnesota (AuSM)
Minnesota's autism community hub: classes, support groups, counseling, camps, and a statewide resource directory.
ausm.orgMN DHS — EIDBI benefit
The official Department of Human Services pages for the EIDBI benefit: policy, covered services, and provider information.
mn.gov/dhsHelp Me Connect (MN)
Minnesota's navigator for families with young children: connects you to local services for development, health, and family support.
helpmeconnect.mn.govHelp Me Grow MN
Free developmental screening and Part C early-intervention referrals for infants and toddlers under age 3, through your school district.
helpmegrowmn.orgMN DHS — TEFRA option
How a child with a disability can qualify for Medical Assistance regardless of household income, and how to apply through your county.
mn.gov/dhsThe Arc Minnesota
Advocacy and one-on-one help navigating disability services, waivers, and benefits across Minnesota.
arcminnesota.org
For questions about therapy and coverage specifically, that is our lane: how EIDBI works and our intake team are the fastest paths to answers.
No. You can contact us at any stage. If your child is already diagnosed, we can talk through next steps; if you are earlier on, we can point you toward the CMDE evaluation and free developmental screening through Help Me Grow. You do not need a referral to ask questions, and asking costs nothing.
Waiting is the hardest stage, and it doesn't have to be idle. Free developmental screening through Help Me Grow, support groups through AuSM, and parent-coaching strategies you can start at home all add up. Contact us during the wait too: intake, coverage verification, and paperwork can all run in parallel so therapy starts sooner once the evaluation is done.
The organizations listed here offer their core navigation and information services free of charge. AuSM has both free resources and paid programs like classes and camps. Our own guides and glossary are free to everyone, no email address required.
Now accepting new clients
Start your child’s intake today
Connect with our BCBA team. We confirm your EIDBI coverage and match your child with the right clinician. Intake takes about five minutes.
- BCBA-led from day one
- EIDBI · Medical Assistance covered
- Intake in about 5 minutes