ABA referral checklist
Many ABA providers need a written referral or a diagnosis report before they add a child to a waitlist. This checklist covers the logistics of asking your child's doctor or another clinician for that written request. Keep the signed copy with your paperwork folder, and use the ABA intake checklist for the rest of what providers often ask for.
How do I ask my doctor for an ABA referral?
Call or visit your child's pediatrician or the clinician who knows your child best. Say you are looking for ABA providers and need a written referral for ABA if your plan or the providers you are calling ask for one. Ask them to put the request in writing, with your child's name, date of birth, the date and their signature or stamp.
Ask these on the visit or call:
- Can you write a referral for ABA therapy for my child?
- What wording do you need on the referral for our insurance plan?
- Can we leave today with a signed copy, or will the office mail or portal it?
- Do you also have the full diagnosis report, or should we request that from the evaluator?
- Is there anyone else in the office who can help if the referral needs a follow-up signature?
What should I bring to the referral visit?
Bring your insurance or Medicaid card, a short note of why you are asking for ABA, and any evaluation summaries you already have. Bring a pen and your ABA waitlist tracker so you can write down what the office promised and when. If you already have a diagnosis report, bring a copy so the doctor can match the referral to it. The ABA provider call script helps once you start calling clinics with the referral in hand.
- Insurance or Medicaid card (front and back copies help).
- Your child's full name and date of birth.
- Any diagnosis report or evaluation summary you already have.
- A short list of the providers you plan to call, if you have one.
- A folder or envelope for the signed referral.
What happens after I get a written referral?
Keep the signed referral with your intake paperwork. Call the providers on your list, ask whether they still need a referral for your plan, and offer to send a copy the way they prefer (fax, portal or email). Log each send date in your waitlist tracker. When a provider later offers a spot, the ABA opening checklist covers what to confirm. For the broader steps to find care, see how to get ABA therapy faster.
How do I use the ABA referral checklist?
- Print the checklist, or keep it open on your phone.
- Call or schedule a visit with your child's doctor to request a written ABA referral.
- Bring the items on the list, ask the questions, and leave with a signed copy when you can.
- File the referral with your intake paperwork and note the date in your waitlist tracker.
- Send a copy to each provider that asks for it, and follow up if the office still needs to finish the paperwork.
Is the ABA referral checklist free?
Yes. Print it, copy it or read it from your phone. Nothing you write on it is sent to Waitless. For related paperwork logistics, see the ABA intake checklist and the referral glossary entry.
See which providers have openings now and how long waits are for your insurance.
Find ABA openings near you