• Applied behavioral analysis (ABA) is considered the “gold standard” treatment for people with ASD.

• By investing in ABA providers who are growing their businesses with additional facilities and licensed staff, private equity is expanding access to care for individuals with ASD.

• As the prevalence of autism continues to grow, private investment is helping to alleviate shortages of ABA-trained providers.

• Private equity gives health care organizations the opportunity to introduce new service lines and explore innovative approaches.

Private investment is filling gaps in care for individuals with ASD and is supporting necessary growth in the field at a time when demand for autism services is rising.

Expanding access to evidence-based treatment

ABA therapy helps many children and adults with autism gain functional and/or long-term independence. It is considered to be the “gold standard” for autism treatment.

Private equity investments are increasing access to quality care and evidence-based treatment for individuals with ASD by helping expand centers and clinics that provide ABA therapy. As a result, certified therapists and other providers are able to serve more communities and improve patient outcomes. Further, the growth of these ABA providers helps promote competition in the health care sector and the autism-therapy industry, creating more choices for autistic individuals and for parents with autistic children while lowering costs.

Addressing workforce shortages

Private equity is fueling critical growth and filling gaps in care for children on the autism spectrum at a time when demand is rising for autism services. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the prevalence of autism is growing, with 1 in every 36 children being identified as a person with ASD. Meanwhile, there is a persistent nationwide shortage of ABA-trained providers.

To alleviate these workforce shortages, private equity is working to increase salaries to recruit and retain more certified employees, investing in additional training for staff, and improving clinical expertise at centers and clinics that help meet the needs of children with autism. One provider of ABA therapy, ABS Kids, was able to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic by growing its clinical staff, investing in its workforce, and opening additional facilities across the country, thanks to its partnership with private equity. An ABS Kids Regional Director also shared that, “It’s really amazing that private equity is so present in the ABA space because it means that more ABA companies are allowed the resources that they need to provide quality care so that more children can access this really important treatment.”

Driving innovative care

Private equity leverages integrated resources to promote a continuum of behavioral health care in addition to ABA therapy by creating new service lines, including mental health and speech and language pathology services, to support people with autism. Further, with the help of private investment, health care organizations are able to explore new innovative approaches to improve social, behavioral, communication, and life skills for individuals with autism, such as through virtual reality or robotics.

The bottom line

Private equity is helping autism service providers, who are providing the “gold standard,” reach more communities while lowering costs for patients and their families and offering them a variety of options for care.