Looking for autism services? California families have four main doors: your regional center, Early Start for children under 3, your school district, and your health plan or Medi-Cal. Start with one of California’s 21 regional centers, which assess eligibility free of charge; intake must happen within 15 working days of your request. This guide shows which door fits your family’s age and situation, and links to a detailed guide for every step.
Quick answer
Autism services in California: Contact your regional center first; it assesses eligibility free and funds lifelong services under the Lanterman Act. Children under 3 use Early Start, and from age 3 the school district provides special education through an IEP. Your health plan or Medi-Cal covers medical care and therapies such as behavioral health treatment. Use all of them at once.
Last checked: November 10, 2026. This is general information, not legal or medical advice.
What autism services does California offer?
California has more public autism support than most states, but it is split across several systems that don’t share paperwork. Each has its own law, its own assessment and its own plan. Families usually need more than one at the same time, and none of them waits for the others.
| System | What it provides | Plan and law |
|---|---|---|
| Regional center | Free eligibility assessment, service coordination, services such as respite and community supports | IPP; Lanterman Act |
| Early Start (under 3) | Early intervention at home and in daily routines | IFSP; federal IDEA Part C |
| School district (3 to 22) | Special education and related services such as speech | IEP; federal IDEA and California Education Code |
| Health plan or Medi-Cal | Diagnosis, medical care, therapies including behavioral health treatment | Plan coverage rules; state insurance law |
Regional centers are private nonprofits that contract with the Department of Developmental Services (DDS). By law they pay only after other sources: Welfare and Institutions Code 4659 tells them to pursue Medi-Cal, private insurance and school services first. That is why families who apply to all systems early usually get help sooner.
Autism services California roadmap by age
The right first step depends on age. Use this table to find your starting point, then follow the guide for that step. Children often move between rows, for example at age 3 and at age 5, and each move has its own deadline.
| Age | Main systems | First step |
|---|---|---|
| Birth to 3 | Early Start through the regional center; health plan | Call your regional center’s Early Start intake line; no diagnosis needed |
| 3 to 5 | School district (preschool IEP); regional center, including provisional eligibility; health plan | Send the school a written assessment request and request regional center intake |
| School age (5 to 17) | School district (IEP); regional center (Lanterman Act); health plan or Medi-Cal | Request regional center intake and a school assessment in the same week |
| 18 and older | Regional center if the disability began before 18; Department of Rehabilitation; school until 22 if still enrolled | Gather childhood records and request regional center intake |
Spotting the signs and understanding autism
Most families start with a worry, not a diagnosis. Our early signs of autism in toddlers checklist lists what to watch for at different ages and when to raise it at a well-child visit. You don’t need to be sure before you call; a concern is enough for an Early Start referral.
If you want to understand the diagnosis itself, our plain-language guide to what autism spectrum disorder is explains the core traits, the DSM-5 support levels and the words families and autistic adults use. Some autistic adults prefer identity-first language (“autistic person”), and many parents say “child with autism.” This guide uses both.
How do you get an autism diagnosis in California?
Ask your pediatrician for a referral to an autism specialist through your health plan or Medi-Cal, and request regional center intake at the same time. A developmental pediatrician, psychologist or other qualified clinician makes the diagnosis. Health plans regulated by the Department of Managed Health Care must offer a non-urgent specialist physician appointment within 15 business days, or arrange care outside the network.
Schools assess for special education, which is not a medical diagnosis. Private evaluations are another option, but ask whether your plan and regional center will accept the report. Our step-by-step guide on how to get an autism diagnosis in California compares the four routes, with costs and waits.
California finds autism earlier than most of the country. In the CDC’s 2025 report on 2022 data, the median age of the earliest known autism diagnosis was 36 months at the California site, compared with 47 months across all 16 sites.
Just got the diagnosis?
The first month matters more than the first day. Our week-by-week plan for families who are newly diagnosed with autism in California covers the regional center call in week 1, school and insurance in week 2, intake preparation in week 3 and support for you in week 4.
Early Start: services for children under 3
Early Start is California’s early intervention program for babies and toddlers from birth to 36 months. A child qualifies with a 25% delay in one developmental area, an established risk condition or a high-risk combination of factors. No autism diagnosis is needed. Anyone can refer, and the regional center must evaluate and hold the first Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) meeting within 45 days of referral.
Services happen at home, in child care and in daily routines, such as speech, occupational therapy and family training. Health insurance is used first, and the regional center pays what no other source covers. The Early Start program California families use is explained in full in our guide, including what happens at the transition to school at age 3. To find local contacts, call the Early Start BabyLine at 800-515-2229.
Regional center autism services: eligibility, applying and intake
Regional centers serve people of any age with a developmental disability under the Lanterman Act, and autism is named in the law. Eligibility is free and does not depend on income. Most services are free too, though the center may ask you to use insurance or Medi-Cal first. Find yours with the DDS regional center lookup by county.
Who qualifies
A diagnosis alone isn’t enough. The autism must have started before age 18, be expected to last indefinitely and cause significant limitations in at least 3 of 7 major life areas, such as self-care, language and learning. Children under 5 can be provisionally eligible with limitations in 2 areas. Our guide to regional center eligibility for autism explains each test and how school eligibility differs.
How to apply
Call or email your regional center’s intake line and ask for intake in writing; no diagnosis is needed first. Intake must happen within 15 working days of your request, and any assessment within 120 days after intake (60 days when delay would risk health or safety). Our walkthrough on how to apply for regional center services includes a sample request and the full timeline.
What to bring
Bring copies of evaluations, therapy reports, medical records, the latest IEP and insurance or Medi-Cal cards, plus a one-page summary of daily needs. Missing papers won’t stop the process. Use our printable regional center intake checklist to gather them.
| Step | Deadline | Law |
|---|---|---|
| Regional center intake | 15 working days after your request | WIC 4642 |
| Regional center assessment | 120 days after intake (60 if urgent) | WIC 4643 |
| First IPP | 60 days after assessment | WIC 4646 |
| Early Start evaluation and IFSP | 45 days after referral | Gov. Code 95020 |
| School assessment plan | 15 days after your written request | California Education Code |
| Regional center appeal | 30 days to keep services; 60 days at most | WIC 4710.5 |
Planning services: the IPP meeting
Once eligible, you and your service coordinator write an Individual Program Plan (IPP), the document that decides which services the regional center funds. The first IPP is due within 60 days of the assessment. It must be reviewed at least every three years, and you can ask for a meeting at any time; it must happen within 30 days.
Since January 1, 2025, new IPPs use a statewide person-centered format. Our guide to the regional center IPP meeting covers who attends, DDS’s free preparation workbooks and how to write goals. Families with a school-age child often juggle two plans; our comparison of IPP vs IEP shows how the regional center plan and the school plan differ and where they overlap.
Therapies such as speech, occupational therapy and behavioral services are planned around the person’s needs. ASC’s Options Policy on autism treatments explains why we describe them neutrally: no single approach fits every autistic person.
What if the regional center says no?
You can appeal any denial of eligibility, refusal of a service or cut to a service you already get. The regional center must send a written Notice of Action. Since March 1, 2023, appeals go to DDS, not the regional center. File within 30 days to keep current services during the appeal, and within 60 days at the latest.
You can choose an informal meeting, mediation, a fair hearing or all three. Every regional center has a free Clients’ Rights Advocate from Disability Rights California’s Office of Clients’ Rights Advocacy. Our guide to the regional center fair hearing walks through each stage and its deadlines.
School services and the IEP
From age 3, the school district provides special education through an Individualized Education Program (IEP). Send a dated written request for an assessment in all areas of suspected disability. The district must send an assessment plan within 15 days, then assess and hold the IEP meeting within 60 days of your signed consent.
School eligibility is a separate decision from the regional center’s, and a medical diagnosis doesn’t decide it. Our complete guide to the autism IEP California process, the next pillar in this series, covers eligibility, assessments, goals and disputes.
Paying for care: health plans and Medi-Cal
Your health plan is often the main payer for therapies. Medi-Cal covers medically necessary behavioral health treatment for members under 21, according to the Department of Health Care Services, when a physician or psychologist finds it medically necessary. California law also requires many private plans to cover autism treatment. Our page on autism insurance in California explains that law, and the guide to whether Medi-Cal covers ABA therapy covers Medi-Cal.
Ask your plan what it covers, whether you need prior authorization and how long the waitlists are. Keep the regional center in the loop: it can help when insurance doesn’t cover a needed service, and for Early Start it pays copays and deductibles on IFSP services.
Autistic adults and services after 18
Adults can apply to a regional center for the first time at any age. DDS says the disability must have begun before age 18, but it doesn’t have to have been diagnosed then. Childhood school, medical and therapy records help show early onset.
If a regional center finds an adult not eligible, DDS points to the California Department of Rehabilitation (1-800-952-5544) for employment, education and independent living services, and to In-Home Supportive Services. Our guide to services for autistic adults in California covers adult services in detail. ASC’s earlier autism employment survey describes what autistic adults told us about work.
Autism in California by the numbers
The CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network found autism in 1 in 31 eight-year-olds across its 16 sites in 2022. The California site had the highest rate, 53.1 per 1,000 children, according to the CDC’s 2025 autism prevalence report. The CDC links the wide range between sites to differences in how communities identify autism.
Our page on autism rates in California combines the CDC data with the DDS caseload trend and explains why California’s numbers stand out.
Who to call for autism help in California
When you don’t know which office handles your question, start with a free line. Each one below answers a different kind of question.
- DDS Autism Helpline: 833-815-2337 or autism@dds.ca.gov, for questions about state autism services.
- Early Start BabyLine: 800-515-2229, to find Early Start contacts for a child under 3.
- Office of Clients’ Rights Advocacy: 1-800-390-7032 (Northern California) or 1-866-833-6712 (Southern California), for regional center rights.
- Autism Society of California information line: 1-800-869-7069, for general questions and local contacts.
Each regional center also has a Community Navigator Program that helps families one on one. Our full list of autism helpline California numbers sorts every line by question. For parent support and events near you, see the Autism Society California affiliates in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, the Inland Empire, Ventura County and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Frequently asked questions
Does the regional center diagnose autism?
Regional centers assess people to decide eligibility, free of charge, and that assessment may include a diagnosis. Its purpose is eligibility under the Lanterman Act, not a full treatment plan. Many families also get a diagnosis through their health plan, which uses it to cover therapies.
Do autism services in California cost money?
Regional center eligibility assessment is free, and most regional center services are free regardless of income. Early Start services are at no cost to eligible families, and school special education is free. Health plan therapies follow your plan’s usual cost sharing, and Medi-Cal covers medically necessary behavioral health treatment under 21.
Can we use the regional center, school and insurance at the same time?
Yes, and you should. Each system decides on its own, and none must wait for another. Regional centers pay only after insurance, Medi-Cal and school, so applying to all of them early protects your regional center request too.
Are there autism services in California for adults diagnosed late?
Yes. An adult diagnosed after 18 can still apply to a regional center if the disability began in childhood. If not eligible, the Department of Rehabilitation and In-Home Supportive Services may help, depending on needs.
Next step
Find your row in the roadmap table and take that first step this week; for most families, that means calling the regional center. If you have a diagnosis already, follow the first 30 days plan after an autism diagnosis. Questions about where to start? Call the Autism Society of California information line at 1-800-869-7069, or connect with your local Autism Society affiliate in California.