The Politics of Autism includes an extensive discussion of autism service providers. Private equity firms now own many of them. Insurance mandates and Medicaid spending have contributed to the growth trend.
Citing a recent 74 Million investigation, two Minnesota state senators announced they will seek laws regulating the influence of private equity investment firms on autism therapy providers.
“This report is outrageous,” said Minneapolis state Sen. Zaynab Mohamed, of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. “The idea that Wall Street investors are exploiting these programs for profit is infuriating.”
Over the last decade, private equity investors — who are subject to very limited oversight — have bought hundreds of mom-and-pop autism therapy centers in Minnesota and elsewhere and consolidated them into lucrative networks. This played a major role in nationwide Medicaid reimbursements for a treatment called applied behavior analysis mushrooming from $400 million in 2019 to nearly $2 billion in 2024, The 74 investigation found.
According to a 74 analysis of U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid records, private equity firms own almost half of the 50 companies with the highest claims — accounting for $3.1 billion of the almost $7 billion billed for during the investigation’s six-year window.
