ABA Medicaid rates in Vermont put the money in analyst time. Vermont Medicaid pays $197.40 an hour for code 97155, analyst treatment with protocol changes, the highest rate in the country, and $263.20 an hour for the 97151 assessment, second only to New Mexico. Yet for code 97153, one-on-one ABA delivered by a technician, Vermont pays $60.00 an hour, 25th of 42 states and 5.4% below the national median of $63.44.
That makes the gap between analyst and technician pay unusually wide. The rates themselves are long-standing, most dating from January 1, 2019, while the way Vermont pays ABA changed in July 2026. All figures are compiled from official Vermont Medicaid (DVHA) publications, and each rate links to its source document.
Vermont Medicaid ABA reimbursement: the analyst premium
| Code | Service | Vermont per hour | Rank | vs national median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 97155 | Treatment with plan changes by an analyst | $197.40 | 1 of 41 | +95.4% |
| 97151 | Assessment by an analyst | $263.20 | 2 of 41 | +125.8% |
| 97158 | Group ABA led by an analyst | $65.80 | 3 of 30 | +76.4% |
| 97152 | Assessment support by a technician | $120.00 | 6 of 29 | +55.8% |
| 97153 | One-on-one ABA by a technician | $60.00 | 25 of 42 | -5.4% |
| 97156 | Parent and caregiver training | $85.56 | 27 of 43 | -9.7% |
Vermont's 97155 rate of $49.35 per unit leads the country, ahead of Alaska at $167.88, Georgia at $160.56, Virginia at $157.60 and South Dakota at $156.00. The 97151 assessment, at $65.80 per unit, is behind only New Mexico at $450.60. Analyst-led groups (97158) pay $16.45 per unit, 3rd of 30 states.
Technician assessment support (97152) also pays well, at $30.00 per unit, or $120.00 an hour, 6th of 29 states.
The 97153 Vermont Medicaid rate and technician margins
Vermont publishes 97153 at $15.00 per 15-minute unit with no modifier, or $60.00 an hour, unchanged since January 1, 2019. Technician-led groups (97154) pay $7.50 per unit, or $30.00 an hour, essentially the national median.
Federal data for May 2025 puts Vermont's median wage for the closest comparable technician occupation at $22.42 an hour, slightly above the national $22.08. That wage is 53.1% of the 97153 rate, leaving a margin of $28.13 an hour after a loaded wage.
For an agency, the technician hour in Vermont is workable but not generous. Because 97153 has not moved since 2019, any increase in technician pay since then has come out of that margin, and an agency planning raises should model them against the same $60.00 hour. The financial strength of a Vermont ABA program sits on the analyst side.
BCBA margins in Vermont
Vermont's analyst proxy wage is $29.72 an hour, against $28.53 nationally. Both wage figures use proxy occupations and are floors rather than market pay for credentialed BCBAs.
- 97155 analyst treatment: wage share 21.4%, margin $155.16 an hour after a loaded wage.
- 97151 assessment: wage share 16.0%, margin $220.96 an hour.
- 97152 technician assessment support: wage share 26.6%, margin $88.13 an hour.
- 97156 caregiver training: wage share 49.4%, margin $43.32 an hour.
Caregiver training (97156) is the exception among analyst codes, at $21.39 per unit, below the national median. A Vermont service model that leans on direct analyst involvement, frequent protocol updates and thorough assessments fits the schedule better than one built on technician volume or caregiver training.
Vermont's ABA payment model: value-based payment to fee-for-service
Vermont has changed how it pays for ABA twice since 2024, through a series of GCR notices:
- January 1, 2024: GCR 23-045, the Applied Behavior Analysis Value-Based Payment Model, was proposed December 29, 2023 and finalized February 22, 2024. A CMS-approved preprint for the value-based payment arrangement covered 2024 through 2026.
- January 1, 2026: GCR 26-010 proposed rescinding the 1% withhold for value-based payment for ABA services.
- July 1, 2026: GCR 26-058, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Transition to Fee-for-Service Payment, was proposed May 29, 2026 and finalized June 30, 2026.
For providers, the July 2026 transition means ABA claims are now paid on a fee-for-service basis against the published rates on this page. Our data counts 3 plans and arrangements in Vermont; see Vermont managed care for how the remaining arrangements are organized.
Prior authorization for Vermont ABA
Vermont's schedule concentrates authorization rules on ongoing treatment:
- 97155, 97156 and 97158: five prior authorization rules each.
- 97153, 97154 and T1027: four rules each.
- 97151 and 97152: none on the schedule.
No ABA code has a published unit limit. Assessments can begin without a schedule-level authorization rule; treatment hours, especially analyst time, face the most rules.
Vermont against its neighbors and the national range
Vermont's analyst rates sit at the top of the national ranking. Neighboring New Hampshire appears on the national low lists for both 97151 and caregiver training, so the two states offer opposite incentives for BCBA time. For the full national comparison, see ABA Medicaid rates by state; for every Vermont code, the Vermont Medicaid rates hub; and for unit conversion and ranking, our methodology.
Updated 2026-10-05