How to Start An ABA Practice in Georgia (2026): License, Medicaid Enrollment & Rates

Licensing

Georgia aba provider license

Georgia requires a Licensed Behavior Analyst; Licensed Assistant Behavior Analyst from Georgia Behavior Analyst Licensing Board (Secretary of State, Professional Licensing Boards Division) to operate an ABA practice. Fee: Not confirmed from a live board page. The 2021 fiscal note for the licensing bill (HB 412) projected a $100 application fee for behavior analysts and assistants and $30 for temporary licenses.

License required: Yes
License: Licensed Behavior Analyst; Licensed Assistant Behavior Analyst
Issuing agency: Georgia Behavior Analyst Licensing Board (Secretary of State, Professional Licensing Boards Division)
Fee: Not confirmed from a live board page. The 2021 fiscal note for the licensing bill (HB 412) projected a $100 application fee for behavior analysts and assistants and $30 for temporary licenses.
Renewal: Every 2 years · The fiscal note projected a $100 renewal fee every two years. The board's current renewal fee and any waiver were not confirmed.
Professional license: board: Georgia Behavior Analyst Licensing Board; statute: O.C.G.A. Title 43, Chapter 7A; Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Chapter 75; behavior analyst: License required. Applicants must hold board certification from the certifying entity (which involves passing its exam and a related master's degree) and pass a fingerprint background check.; assistant behavior analyst: Separate assistant license (BCaBA, bachelor's level), practicing under supervision.; technician: No Georgia technician license was found. Medicaid lets RBTs deliver treatment under an enrolled supervisor, but RBTs cannot enroll as Medicaid providers themselves.; medicaid enrollment: Georgia Medicaid (DCH) has covered ASD services for members under 21 since January 1, 2018. Only licensed physicians, licensed psychologists, BCBA-Ds and BCBAs may enroll as ASD providers, through GAMMIS plus an experience/supervision attestation. BCaBAs and RBTs deliver services under them. Services are prior-authorized in six-month increments.
Regulation: O.C.G.A. § 43-7A-1 et seq.; Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 75; Georgia Medicaid Part II Policies and Procedures for ASD Services

How to apply

Steps to get licensed in Georgia

In order, as the licensing agency describes the process.

Hold the certifying-entity credential (BCBA, or BCaBA for assistants), which includes the certifying exam and the required degree
Apply through the Secretary of State GOALS online licensing portal; paper applications are not accepted
Complete a fingerprint background check
Medicaid: enroll as an individual practitioner in GAMMIS and complete the ASD attestation (at least one year of full-time ASD direct-care experience)

Staffing

Staffing and training requirements

Staffing: Medicaid: an enrolled supervisor (licensed physician, licensed psychologist, BCBA-D or BCBA) may supervise up to six BCaBAs and/or RBTs at a time
Medicaid treating staff need at least one year of required experience

Medicaid

Enrolling as a Georgia Medicaid provider

Program: Georgia Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids (Department of Community Health)
Enrollment portal: Georgia Medicaid Management Information System (GAMMIS) — Enrollment Wizard
Fiscal agent: Gainwell Technologies (GAMMIS fiscal agent / third-party administrator; also handles CVO credentialing help)
Application fee: Georgia's Part I manual requires the fee from new, re-enrolling, revalidating and re-credentialing providers in the categories of service it lists, unless exempt, or a hardship waiver request instead. Applications without either are not processed, the fee is generally non-refundable, and an exempt provider pays once per service location even with several categories of service. Federal rule (42 CFR 455.460): the state must collect the CMS application fee from institutional providers that are newly enrolling or re-enrolling; individual physicians and non-physician practitioners are exempt, as are providers already enrolled in (or that already paid the fee to) Medicare or another state's Medicaid/CHIP. CMS set the fee at $750 for calendar year 2026.
Fingerprinting: Georgia's high categorical risk categories are community mental health centers, newly enrolling home health agencies, and newly enrolling DME/orthotic and prosthetic supplier facilities. Georgia defines a criminal background check as a state and/or national fingerprint-based check. Federal rule (42 CFR 455.434, 455.450(c)): providers the state places in the 'high' categorical risk level, and anyone owning 5% or more of such a provider, must submit fingerprints for a criminal background check.
Site visit: DCH may do pre- and post-enrollment, unscheduled and unannounced site visits. Moderate-risk categories include ambulance providers, hospices, independent clinical labs, physical therapists, and revalidating home health agencies and DME suppliers. Federal rule (42 CFR 455.432, 455.450(b)-(c)): the state must do site visits before and after enrollment for providers in the 'moderate' or 'high' risk levels, and any enrolled provider must allow unannounced on-site inspections.
Revalidation: DCH suspended providers that had not revalidated as of July 1, 2026; claims for dates of service from then on are not paid until the provider revalidates, and the new effective date is the revalidation submission date. Federal rule (42 CFR 455.414): every enrolled provider must be revalidated at least once every 5 years.

Full Georgia Medicaid enrollment guide →

Certificate of need

Does Georgia require a certificate of need?

CON program: Yes
Program: Certificate of Need
Agency: Georgia Department of Community Health (DCH), Office of Health Planning
Services covered: hospitals (including destination cancer hospitals)
special care units
skilled nursing facilities
intermediate care facilities
personal care homes of 25 or more beds
ambulatory surgical or obstetrical facilities
freestanding emergency departments off a hospital's primary campus
home health agencies
health maintenance organizations
certain diagnostic, treatment or rehabilitation centers
bed capacity increases and new clinical services

Georgia certificate of need details →

Labor

Georgia wage floor

State minimum wage: $7.25 an hour
Effective: 2009-07-24
Scheduled increases: No scheduled change found in the official sources reviewed.
HCBS 80/20 rule: Federal baseline: 42 CFR 441.302(k) requires the state to show that each provider spends at least 80% of Medicaid payments for homemaker, home health aide and personal care services under 1915(c) waivers on direct care worker pay and benefits. Compliance starts 2030-07-09 (for managed care, the first rating period starting on or after that date); annual payment-adequacy reporting under 441.311(e) starts 2028-07-09. A state may set a lower share for state-defined small providers and exempt providers facing hardship, each only through a public notice-and-comment process. The eCFR text has not changed since 2024-07-09. No state-published 80/20 implementation step (small-provider criteria, hardship exemption or reporting guidance) was found for this state in the official sources reviewed.

Market

Georgia market size

Counts from federal public files: NPPES (active organization NPIs), CMS Care Compare and CMS Medicaid enrollment.

Applied behavior analysis organizations — active organization NPIs (NPPES): 789 (as of Sep 13, 2026)
Total Medicaid and CHIP enrollment (latest reported month): 1,817,766 (as of Jun 1, 2026)

Rates

What Georgia Medicaid pays

Applied behavior analysis (ABA): published Georgia fee-for-service rates, each linked to its source.

Service	Code	Georgia rate	Per hour	Rank
One-on-one ABA therapy by a technicianBehavior technician	97153	$30.91per 15 min	$123.64	2 of 42
ABA therapy with plan changes by an analystBehavior analyst	97155	$40.14per 15 min	$160.56	3 of 41
ABA assessment by a behavior analystBehavior analyst	97151	$40.14per 15 min	$160.56	9 of 41
ABA assessment support by a technicianBehavior technician	97152	$30.91per 15 min	$123.64	5 of 29
ABA parent and caregiver trainingBehavior analyst	97156	$17.52per 15 min	$70.08	39 of 43

All Georgia ABA Medicaid rates, ranked →

Waivers

Georgia HCBS waivers

Medicaid home and community-based services programs that may pay for this service.

Comprehensive Supports Waiver Program (1915(c))
Elderly and Disabled Waiver (1915(c))
Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP) (1915(c))
New Options Waiver (NOW) (1915(c))

Georgia waivers and waiting lists →

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Do you need a license to start an ABA practice in Georgia?

Georgia requires a Licensed Behavior Analyst; Licensed Assistant Behavior Analyst from Georgia Behavior Analyst Licensing Board (Secretary of State, Professional Licensing Boards Division) to operate an ABA practice. Fee: Not confirmed from a live board page. The 2021 fiscal note for the licensing bill (HB 412) projected a $100 application fee for behavior analysts and assistants and $30 for temporary licenses.

How much does an ABA practice license cost in Georgia?

Not confirmed from a live board page. The 2021 fiscal note for the licensing bill (HB 412) projected a $100 application fee for behavior analysts and assistants and $30 for temporary licenses. Renewal: Every 2 years · The fiscal note projected a $100 renewal fee every two years. The board's current renewal fee and any waiver were not confirmed..

Does Georgia require a certificate of need for an ABA practice?

Georgia has a certificate of need program covering: hospitals (including destination cancer hospitals), special care units, skilled nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, personal care homes of 25 or more beds, ambulatory surgical or obstetrical facilities, freestanding emergency departments off a hospital's primary campus, home health agencies, health maintenance organizations, certain diagnostic, treatment or rehabilitation centers, bed capacity increases and new clinical services. Check whether your service is on that list.

How do you become a Medicaid provider in Georgia?

Enroll through Georgia Medicaid Management Information System (GAMMIS) — Enrollment Wizard (https://www.mmis.georgia.gov/portal/PubAccess.Enrollment/Enrollment%20Wizard/tabId/30/Default.aspx), run by Gainwell Technologies (GAMMIS fiscal agent / third-party administrator; also handles CVO credentialing help).

What does Georgia Medicaid pay a ABA practice?

Georgia Medicaid pays $30.91 per 15 min for one-on-one aba therapy by a technician, effective Jul 1, 2025, ranking 2 of 42 states.

How to start an ABA practice in Georgia