ALERT: Navigating the COVID-19 Impact on ABA Services

March 19, 2020

ABA providers nationwide are facing extreme challenges in delivering ABA services in person in light of the health and safety risks posed by the COVID-19 outbreak. The entire healthcare community is scrambling to determine how to deliver services via telehealth in order to minimize disruptions to medically necessary care as much as possible. To assist, on March 17 the U.S.  Department of Health and Human Services announced reduced enforcement of HIPAA requirements for technology used for telehealth. The announcement includes a list of approved technology to allow providers to continue treating clients during the pandemic. Additionally, our Coalition partners are working to get providers the most up-to-date information and resources available for implementing telehealth in their practices. The Association of Professional Behavior Analysts (APBA) will offer a webinar on working with health plans on March 25 and 28 (same content both times). Registration will open soon; check www.apbahome.net and social media for an announcement. The Council of Autism Service Providers (CASP) has a wealth of resources on telehealth that are available to both members and non-members. They include the Telehealth Guidelines, which are being widely circulated by payers; a recorded “Telehealth in ABA” webinar, which is available for free; and a collection of online documents. All of those can be accessed by registering at casproviders.org. Additionally, CASP will conduct another telehealth webinar on Tuesday, March 24. Finally, CASP has assembled an ABA Telehealth Task Force, which is working to produce additional resources to guide providers and payers on acceptable telehealth practices during this crisis. We will continue to post updated information as it becomes available.