A Supportive Guide to Finding the Right ABA Therapy Program

There’s a particular kind of paralysis that can set in after an autism diagnosis. The evaluation is behind you and the referral sheet is in your hand. Now you’re supposed to do — what, exactly? 

You may not be sure what to say, what to ask, or may feel embarrassed for not knowing more. This guide will help you through that big first step. 

Trista Ortiz, CSD’s manager of intake operations, has been on the receiving end of those calls from parents and caregivers more times than she can count. In her role at CSD, she leads the team that connects with families. 

In a given month, her team hears from roughly a thousand families. Some are in shock, many are exhausted from a year-long diagnostic and assessment process, and some have already called six other providers only to be told there’s a waitlist. Still others are disappointed with their current ABA provider and wanting to explore other options.

What Trista has learned and what she wants every family to know before they take that first step is this: just show up, have that first conversation. At the very least, you’ll see you’re not alone, wherever you end up.” 

How Do You Know You’re Ready to Reach Out?

One of the most common misconceptions families have is that they need to wait until they are themselves experts in ABA.

The truth is much simpler. The best time to contact an ABA provider is when you have a diagnosis and referral for services. That’s it.

Trista’s team is just as happy to hear from families eager to enroll ASAP as they are families who are in fact-finding mode with lots of questions. 

“Even if for whatever reason they aren’t ready or they end up not being a fit for ABA, I love to encourage families to reach out to us at any point with any questions,” Trista says. “We truly want to be a resource for those families. If they need time or just want to call and ask something, we love to meet them where they’re at.”

Trista says the main thing to avoid is waiting so long that anxiety causes inaction. Families are wired to want to make the right decision for their child. But sometimes that instinct becomes an emotional roadblock, when reaching out is the very thing that would move them and their child forward.

The Normal Emotions Families Often Feel During Their Search

Trista says most families her team talks to are overwhelmed, recently diagnosed, and holding a list of referrals. Occupational therapy (OT), speech therapy (ST), ABA, and a pages-long individual education plan (IEP). Others are not happy with their current service provider and feel frustrated or upset.

It is understandably overwhelming. Each therapy is a new provider to research, a new process to navigate, new phone calls to make, and lots of notetaking to try and keep it all in order.

“They want to make sure they’re not delaying services for their child, but they also don’t really know where to start. And there’s this level of not wanting to mess up.”

— CSD’s Manager of Intake Operations, Trista Ortiz

What Trista also notices is the quieter feeling some callers carry into the conversation. A low-grade embarrassment about not knowing more. 

“I don’t know if shame is the right word,” she says, “but sometimes I feel like there’s this level of embarrassment, and a family says ‘I don’t even know what ABA is. I’m just calling because I was told to call.’”

That feeling is real, as any seasoned autism parent can attest to. It is also completely unwarranted. 

ABA is a highly specialized field and nobody outside it is expected to understand how it works before they’ve engaged with it. And that’s perfectly okay, because the teams answering those first calls have explained it thousands of times to families at every starting point, and not one of them was expected to arrive knowing more than they did.

What to Have Ready, and What Not to Worry About

Having certain documents available when you reach out will make the enrollment process move faster if you decide to move ahead. But not having them won’t stop the process. Trista says if you can gather the following information before you call, great; if you’re not there yet, don’t let that hold you up, still reach out.

• Your child’s autism diagnosis or evaluation report. This is the foundational document most insurers require to authorize ABA services. Some insurances require it to be dated within the last two years. If yours is older, you may need a brief updated letter from your provider.
• Your insurance card and coverage information. CSD and most providers verify your eligibility and benefits, so you know exactly what services are covered and whether there is any cost to you.
• Basic contact and residence information. Child’s date of birth, primary address, and how best to reach you. 

The first call is really all about getting to know your family, your child’s needs, and your situation. This is enough, says Trista, to get you started and on your way to services.

Some families call before they have any of this, and that’s okay. They may still be in the diagnostic process, or are just trying to understand their options. Trista says these are completely valid reasons to still reach out. The care coordinator team’s job isn’t to process paperwork. It’s to guide you and help you understand where you are in the process, what comes next, and if you move ahead, to initiate the next steps.

What Happens When You Reach Out

Whether you call CSD, complete a web form, send a text, or engage with a CSD AI agent, the experience is designed to feel like the start of a supportive and real conversation, not a screening.

Here’s what to expect:

The conversation establishes that you’re in very good hands and supports whatever emotional state you show up in. Then it explores your family’s situation: where you are in the process, what you know and don’t know, and what you’re hoping to find out. CSD’s care coordination team isn’t reading from a script. They are genuinely and empathetically trying to understand what you need so they can help you get there.

Next, your coordinator will explain CSD’s services — what they are, what settings are available in your location (in-center, in-home, virtual, at school), and what the assessment and onboarding process looks like. 

Most families start with their child receiving an assessment, which determines whether ABA is recommended, what frequency of hours makes sense, what setting or settings would be most effective, and what goals the treatment plan will address first. CSD’s assessments are often done virtually, which means they can typically be scheduled without delay, regardless of where you’re located.

“CSD doesn’t have a waitlist. And so I think that’s something that stands out about our services. We can always start the assessment process right away.”

— CSD’s Manager of Intake Operations, Trista Ortiz

Trista says one thing that most surprises families is that CSD doesn’t have a waitlist. 

“I spoke with a parent recently where the waitlists are just crazy,” Trista recounts. “Every provider they talk to, there’s waitlists — a waitlist to get diagnosed, a waitlist to get speech, to get OT. And so I think that’s something that stands out about our services. We can always start the assessment process right away.”

After the first conversation, your CSD care coordinator will send a follow-up with next steps and any documents they’ll need to get from you or, with your permission, request on your behalf. Once those are received, the team works to verify your insurance coverage and any copay, and request authorization for the initial assessments.

For many families, the process from first contact to starting an assessment can happen in days rather than weeks, depending on how quickly your insurance provider processes the authorization.

What Trista hopes every family feels at the end of that first conversation is not just informed, but less alone. 

“We want to get to know that family. We want to build a connection, and we want them to feel comfortable choosing us as their child’s service provider. We have to take that with a level of honor. They have a hundred providers to pick from. If they’re choosing CSD, we want to do everything we can to live up to their expectations.

What CSD Wants Every Family to Know

After years of first-point-of-contact care coordination conversations, there is one thing that tends to shift the energy of a call more than anything else, and it’s not an insurance coverage detail or information on the intake timeline. It’s a story.

Trista describes a recent call with a father whose one-year-old had just been diagnosed. In the middle of the conversation, he asked a question she hears in different ways all the time, but rarely so plainly:

Is he going to get better?

“It just sat with me after work,” Trista recalls. “This dad whose child got the diagnosis and just doesn’t even know what to do. So, I took a step back with him, tried to listen to how he was feeling, and then shared with him that many of our clients graduate our services. 

“They move on to attending class, social activities, playing sports, or getting a job. That’s our goal: to see our clients graduate so they can move on to the next steps in life.”

The idea that ABA is about helping a child live their best possible life — not ‘fixing’ them, not making them neurotypical, but equipping them with skills that open doors — that is what Trista comes back to again and again. And it’s the one thing that makes a scared parent take a relieved breath. 

Questions to Ask Any ABA Provider

Here are the questions Trista suggests asking any ABA provider you’re evaluating, whether that’s CSD or someone else.

• How quickly can we start? Ask about the assessment timeline, not just the start of ongoing services. A provider who can’t answer this clearly may not have a streamlined process.
• Is there a waitlist, and if so, what are we waiting for? Some delays are insurance-driven, and others may be therapist staffing constraints. Trista emphasizes that knowing which and how long matters.
• How do you decide what types and quantities of services are right for my child? Ask about in-center, in-home, in-school, and virtual, and whether a combination is possible. A provider who pushes one option without explaining the others may not be thinking about your child’s best fit. Hours should be determined by assessed clinical need, not availability. 
• What happens if, for example, virtual or in-center therapy isn’t working? Good providers will tell you honestly when a service setting isn’t a good fit, including their own. Ask how that determination is made and what the path to alternative settings looks like.
• What will insurance really cover, and will you tell me before we start? You deserve a detailed and straight answer on coverage and any costs or copays before you commit. A provider who can’t or won’t verify your benefits before enrollment is a big red flag.
• How will you communicate to us through the process? Trista’s team sends a follow-up after every first contact, but that’s not universal across providers. Ask what consistent communication looks like at each stage.

What Trista tells families to listen for isn’t just the answers. It’s how the answers come. A provider who tells you what you want to hear to close the enrollment call is different from one who truly leans in and listens and gives you honest information about waitlists, fit, and timelines. You should feel not just hear the difference. 

The best ABA programs don’t start with a predetermined plan. They start by getting to know your child—their strengths, interests, challenges, and goals. You should expect your provider to talk about partnership, individualized care, and meaningful outcomes for your family, not just hours and authorizations.

You’re More Ready Than You Think

Trista shares that the families who navigate this process most smoothly aren’t the ones who called knowing the most. They’re the ones who called anyway and who let the people on the other end of the call do what they’re there to do.

You don’t need to understand ABA before you ask for help and guidance. You don’t need the right words, and you don’t need to have your insurance information memorized or your diagnosis report scanned. As Trista says: you just need to take the step.

CSD’s intake specialists are here for whatever form that step takes, whether a phone call, web form, text. They’re here for that question you’re not quite sure how to ask. They’ve heard it all, and they’re genuinely glad you reached out so they can support your family’s journey.