Midwest Autism & Therapy Centers - Ankeny

Midwest Centers are specially designed medical offices that provide early-intervention, center-based ABA therapy to children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. 

ABA is an acronym that stands for Applied Behavior Analysis, a type of evidence-based behavior therapy that is considered the “gold standard” of Autism treatment. ABA is often used to help children on the spectrum build daily living, social, communication, and school readiness skills. 

At Midwest, we specialize in what’s called “early-intervention” services for children up to age five. Early-intervention programs are designed to help children with developmental delays catch up to their peers in key areas like communication or life skills before entering school. 

While Midwest does accept Medicaid and Iowa TotalCare plans, we are unable to accept Hawki insurance plans. This is because Hawki does not provide coverage for any behavioral health services.

No, our offices do not provide Autism assessments. Click here to see a list of local assessment providers.

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is a therapy rooted in the science of learning and behavior. Using principles of ABA, children and adults can learn to improve their communication skills, social skills, and daily living skills while also addressing problematic or challenging behaviors. The primary goal of ABA therapy is to teach helpful skills that promote independence and reduce harmful behaviors. Here's our complete guide to everything you need to know about ABA therapy.

It's a big decision to make for your family! Applied behavior analysis (ABA) seeks to improve communication skills, introduce productive habits, and reduce harmful behaviors. Watch out for ABA providers who look to "cure" autism.

High quality ABA therapy does exist where the goal is not to “fix” children, make them appear “less autistic”, or change who they are. The goal is to help people learn all that they can so they can live to their potential while embracing their unique, individual personality traits. Here's our complete guide to start and end ABA therapy.

ABA is usually covered by insurance if you have an autism diagnosis. Autism is typically the only diagnosis insurance will authorize for ABA services since its benefits have been researched extensively.

Always check with your specific insurance plan to confirm that ABA is covered for your child’s diagnoses and that the provider you are seeking care at is in-network. Here's our complete guide to everything you need to know about ABA therapy.

“Early Intervention” might be the provider’s way of describing services that they provide to babies or young children. However, it might also indicate that the provider is a vendor for your state’s publicly funded program. This means the services with this provider might be covered by your state! 

The first step in accessing these free services from your state is to get an evaluation. The evaluation will help the state determine what services your child qualifies for, if any. You can find your state’s local EI program by clicking here.