For the fourth time, federal auditors have turned up improper or potentially improper Medicaid payments in every sample of autism therapy records they audited. This report, focused on Colorado, yielded the highest improper payment amount yet.
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General
uncovered $285.2 million
in improper and potentially improper payments in 2022 and 2023 to clinicians who provide a popular form of autism therapy called applied behavior analysis, or ABA. The payments, administered under Colorado’s Medicaid program, come from the state and federal governments.
HHS OIG
announced in 2022
it would conduct reviews of Medicaid payments to ABA providers in seven states. The first was
Indiana
, then
Wisconsin
, and
Maine
. ABA is a commonly used therapy for managing autism symptoms, but a
2022 STAT investigation
found that a rapid influx of private equity investment in the industry has contributed to a crisis of providers routinely overbilling insurers while providing substandard treatment to vulnerable children and families.
Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…
— Source: STAT News (https://www.statnews.com/2026/03/02/hhs-medicaid-audit-finds-autism-therapy-overpayment-colorado/)
