Yesterday, MassHealth announced a new policy requiring managed care entities (MCEs) providing Medicaid services to contract only with applied behavior analysis (ABA) providers who are accredited. The decision—made at the Community Behavioral Health Center’s monthly meeting—is designed to promote increased quality and efficiency of ABA services across the state.
ABA is the most effective treatment for people with autism spectrum disorder. However, quality can vary significantly by provider. False claims of expertise, poor training programs, low reimbursement rates, and overwhelming demand for services are all barriers to quality.
Addressing these challenges requires compliance with industry standards developed and enforced by a known, trusted accreditation body. The Autism Commission on Quality (ACQ) is a non-profit accreditation body backed by the Council of Autism Service Providers, a trusted trade association led by the team of parent advocates who passed autism insurance reform across the country.
“Accreditation can help address the barriers preventing families from accessing the quality ABA services they deserve,” said Erick Dubuque, director of ACQ. “We look forward to helping our colleagues meet MassHealth’s requirements and finding ways for our accreditation program to help reduce unnecessary administrative burdens for the providers in their network.”
MassHealth’s policy shift includes:
- Revising contracts to require accreditation by a nationally recognized accreditation body specializing in ABA.
- Requiring center-based ABA providers to be accredited by January 1, 2027 and all other ABA providers to be accredited by January 1, 2028.
- Simplifying requirements for autism diagnosis.
- Clarifying expectations for caregiver training.
- Increased focus on individualized treatment and documentation of treatment.
“Creating financial incentives will help promote wide-scale adoption of accreditation. However, not all accreditation bodies are created equally,” said Andi Waks, chair of ACQ’s Accreditation Committee. “ACQ is a non-profit entity committed to transparency and avoiding financial conflicts of interest. This isn’t a business for us—it’s a calling to improve quality. We encourage providers across Massachusetts to consider ACQ when complying with the new requirements.”
