OMAHA, Neb (KMTV) — In the past decade the awareness around autism and the best way to help kids with autism learn has grown exponentially.
“Autism diagnosis have increased by around 175% in the last decade. We used to see it in around 1 in 500 kids now its 1 in 36,” said Rachael Cundall, a board certified behavior analyst in Omaha.
Rachael Cundall is a board certified behavior analysts in Omaha who offers her patients ABA therapy, or Applied Behavioral Analysis.
“ABA is used to teach functional behaviors, so we teach a lot of communication skills, self help independent living type of skills,” said Cundall.
The popularity of ABA has skyrocketed in recent years and many states are now taking a closer look at how much support they are giving ABA providers.
According to DHHS from 2020 to 2023 state medicaid aid towards ABA rose from $4.6 Million in 2020 to $52 million in 2023.
DHHS is now proposing new rules that could would limit care hours and change the qualifications needed to work as a Registered Behavioral Technician from a high school diploma to a bachelor’s with work experience.
“It would deter a lot of people from even starting in this field and we are already experiencing a staffing shortage in this field,” said Cundall.
Cundall says the education requirements will make it harder to hire the RBT’s necessary to care for the kids they serve but Cundall said she is particularly worried about the limits to care hours DHHS is proposing.
ABA takes time and she is worried that putting these barriers up for care could leave thousands of kids behind developmentally.
“Think about, in 7 years we are gonna have 500,000 kiddos who are teenagers now and have autism are going to become adults, and then what’s gonna happen? If there services are cut now then where does that leave them when they enter adulthood,” said Cundall.
