Starting therapy or an assessment for your child usually comes with a lot of questions about cost — and most of them are hard to answer from a rate sheet alone. This page walks through what to expect: what’s typically covered, what therapy costs, and what other fees might come up. If you don’t see your specific situation answered here, reach out and we’ll walk through it with you directly.
Do I need a diagnosis to start?
No. You don’t need a formal autism diagnosis or a doctor’s referral to begin either ABA therapy or speech-language services with us. Families often start support while an assessment is still in progress, or before one has even been scheduled.
Does OAP cover this?
The Ontario Autism Program (OAP) will cover your child for core clinical services — including ABA, Psychology, Psychotherapy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech-Language Pathology — once your child has progressed through the intake stages. If you’re not yet registered with OAP or aren’t sure where you stand in the process, our team can point you toward the right next step.
Does my insurance cover this?
Many extended health benefit plans include coverage for ABA and speech-language services, but plans vary widely. Before starting, we recommend contacting your insurance provider to ask about service coverage, plan limits and session maximums, and the required credentials of the therapists delivering the services. We’re happy to provide documentation of our therapists’ credentials to support your claim.
What will an assessment cost?
An initial baseline assessment is included as part of your therapy plan. [🔲 If a standalone diagnostic assessment is offered separately from ongoing therapy, insert its cost here — flat fee or hourly rate.] Reach out to our team for a personalized quote based on your child’s needs.
What will therapy cost?
Rates depend on the role of the clinician delivering your child’s care and the specific plan we build together:
| Role | Rate |
|---|---|
| BCBA / Behaviour Analyst | $150–230/hr |
| Behaviour Technician | $50–85/hr |
| ABA “all-in” package rate | $85–125/hr |
| Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) | $150–230/hr |
| SLP Assistant / CDA / Communication Support Personnel | $85–150/hr |
Behaviour Technician hours include a supervision overhead of 15–20% of direct hours, billed at the BCBA rate. SLP Assistant/CDA hours include a supervision overhead of 10–15% of direct hours, billed at the SLP rate. This reflects the clinical oversight your child’s plan receives even during hours delivered by a technician or assistant.
All contracts and invoices use line-item billing, in line with Ontario regulatory requirements — you’ll always be able to see exactly what you’re being charged for and why.
Are there minimums?
ABA therapy has a 9-hour weekly minimum, to ensure the intensity needed for meaningful progress. Speech-language services have no weekly minimum 🔲 (see Open Question 2 — confirm this is accurate and not an omission) — sessions can be scheduled at a frequency that fits your child’s and family’s needs.
What other fees should I expect? 🔲
(Placeholder — see Open Question 3. Drafted with the honest “ask us” framing since no confirmed rates exist yet; swap in real numbers if any of these have set rates.)
Depending on your plan, you may also see charges for things like travel time and mileage, report writing, additional assessments, meetings outside of scheduled sessions, and before/after-therapy or lunch-time care. [🔲 If any of these have a set rate — e.g., a per-km travel charge — list it here.] Where a fee isn’t a flat rate, we’ll walk you through the specifics before it applies, so there are no surprises on your invoice.