ABA assessment support by a technician: Medicaid rates by state

This is a service-level benchmark rather than a single code: each state's headline rate for ABA assessment support by a technician is chosen to match the same service and the same provider level.

• Provider level. States are compared at the behavior technician (RBT / BT) level. Rates for other levels on file (assistant behavior analyst, behavior analyst and physician or licensed psychologist) are kept separate, never mixed into this ranking.
• Unit. All 31 states publish their headline rate per 15 min, so the amounts compare directly. The ranking converts every time-based rate to an hour of service, so states that bill by the 15 minutes and by the hour compare directly.
• Variants. 19 of the 31 states publish more than one rate for this service (by modifier, program, setting or provider type); the headline rate is the one that matches the comparison, and the workspace lists every variant.
• Depth. 280 rates for this service are on file across all states, versions and provider levels; this page shows one headline rate per state.

The highest-paying state, New Mexico, pays $261.88 per hour; the lowest, West Virginia, pays $39.60 per hour, a 6.6x gap. 15 of the 31 states pay above the median of $79.24 per hour. Common reasons rates for ABA / autism services services spread this way:

• Group sessions, family guidance, telehealth and rural modifiers each carry their own rates.
• States built their ABA benefits at different times, and some have not rebased their rates since.
• ABA rates depend on who delivers the service: a behavior technician, an assistant behavior analyst or a licensed behavior analyst, and states set a different rate for each.

Billing notes

Modifiers such as HM, HN, HO and HP identify the practitioner's level in states that pay by credential. The ABA treatment codes are timed, so the rate is usually per 15-minute unit and four units make an hour.