Children who lost out in the first lottery have a second chance at free autism treatment, or applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy, paid for by a pilot program under Medicaid.
The Utah Department of Health has openings for 35 children and is taking applications through July 12. The slots will be assigned to different regions of the state based on population and filled via a lottery, not on a first-come, first-served basis.
The pilot is one of three testing the benefits of ABA; advocates hope it will sway insurers to cover therapy.
It ended the year with extra money because it took about six months to get providers enrolled, said health department spokeswoman Kolbi Young.
To avoid children aging out of the program before receiving a full year of therapy, the Legislature extended it to 6-year-olds. The two-year pilot was originally designed to serve children through age 5.
The extension has eased frustrations for Cami Egelston, whose son turns 6 this summer.
"Weve just been grateful from the get-go to have treatment, so weve tried to be patient and careful about getting all the paperwork in on time so we could start therapy as soon as possible," said the South Jordan mom.
Egelston describes her son as high functioning. This year he enrolled in kindergarten and received speech and occupational therapy through the public school system.
He started his 12 hours of weekly ABA therapy in February and has made significant gains in four months, she said. "He had some fine motor struggles and was wanting to write more, which hes doing now because he has the confidence. Hes off the charts in reading now and learning to control some of his anger and outbursts."
The program pays for therapy and respite care for families.
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Utah kids get a second chance at free autism therapy