Autism Evaluation in Denver, Colorado
In Denver, a licensed psychologist, a developmental pediatrician, or a hospital diagnostic team can diagnose autism. Your school district can't, though it can evaluate your child for free and start services while you wait.
Budding Futures ABA doesn't perform autism evaluations. We provide in-home ABA therapy in Denver after a child is diagnosed, which is why this list includes practices we have no relationship with.
And families still wait months, because only some take Medicaid and only some assess young children.
The three Denver routes
Denver has more evaluators than anywhere else in Colorado, and families still wait months. The bottleneck isn't the number of practices. It's that only some of them take Medicaid and only some of them assess young children.
There are three practical routes, and most families should start more than one at the same time.
- A private practice or hospital team gives you the medical diagnosis that insurers read. This is the route that costs money and takes the longest.
- Denver Public Schools Child Find evaluates children aged 3 and up at no cost, and it can start while you sit on a clinical waitlist.
- Early Intervention Colorado covers birth to age 3, also free, and you can refer your own child today.
Getting on two waitlists isn't pushy. Practices expect it, and cancellations move fast.
Denver evaluation providers
These are Denver-area practices whose own websites state that they perform autism diagnostic evaluations. We checked each one directly rather than copying another directory.
| Practice | Ages it evaluates | Payment it names | Published cost or wait | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insights | all ages, as young as 12 months · evaluates under 3 | Medicaid; Cigna, Aetna, Colorado Health First Medicaid, Kaiser Permanente | Diagnostic Evaluations Vary by Purpose of Evaluation and Scope of Testing | (303) 935-5307 |
| Autism Insights, PLLC | Children 31-months to 65 years of age. · evaluates under 3 | Call to confirm | Not published | (719) 203-9417 |
| Gary M. Eisenberg, PHD - Littleton ADHD, Autism and Dyslexia Center | children, teens and adults · evaluates under 3 | Call to confirm | Not published | (303) 808-4140 |
| Zarlengo Foundation Learning Evaluation Center | 4–21 | Call to confirm | Not published | (720) 441-1694 |
| Wolff Child Psychology | child, teen, children and adolescents · evaluates under 3 | Call to confirm | Not published | (303) 500-3407 |
| Children's Hospital Colorado, Developmental Pediatrics | Call to confirm | Call to confirm | Not published | (720) 777-6630 |
| Elevated Insights Assessment | as young as 18 months of age to adults · evaluates under 3 | Call to confirm | Not published | (303) 756-1197 |
| Autism Testing for Kids (AT4K) Denver | Call to confirm | Call to confirm | Not published | (720) 818-7115 |
| Brain and Body Integration | Call to confirm | Call to confirm | Not published | (720) 640-4567 |
Every row above comes from that practice's own public website, checked on August 4, 2026. Blank cells mean the practice does not publish that detail, not that the answer is no. Ages, fees and waits change, so confirm on the call.
Two things worth knowing before you call. A large share of the autism testing marketed in Denver is aimed at adults, so ask straight away whether the practice assesses children your child's age. And ask whether the person doing the assessment is the person you'll get the report from, because at some practices those are different people with different waitlists.
The free route most families miss
Colorado runs two publicly funded evaluation systems, and neither charges families anything.
Children under 3 go through Early Intervention Colorado. From age 3, it is Child Find, run by your school district. The state education department puts it plainly: "Child Find is provided at no cost to families," and anyone worried about a child can make the referral. You do not need a doctor's note to start.
The catch matters, so be clear on it. Child Find decides whether your child qualifies for special education support at school. That's educational eligibility, not a medical diagnosis. Private insurers generally want the medical one before they authorize therapy, so many Denver families end up needing both. The free one is simply the one that can start this month.
For a route-by-route comparison by age, see our guide to autism testing for kids in Colorado.
What the evaluation involves
First, a distinction worth having straight. A screening is the short checklist your pediatrician runs at a well-child visit, and it only flags whether a fuller look is warranted. A diagnostic evaluation is the longer assessment that can actually diagnose autism spectrum disorder, usually written up as ASD in the report.
A full autism evaluation isn't a single test. It's usually two to four hours of structured observation and interview, sometimes split across visits.
Most Colorado practices build it from the same parts:
- A developmental history interview with you, covering milestones, language, play and family history.
- The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, second edition, known as the ADOS-2. It's a structured play and conversation session with the child and it's the closest thing the field has to a standard.
- The Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised, or a similar parent interview, at practices that use it.
- An adaptive functioning measure, which rates everyday skills such as dressing, safety and communication.
- Cognitive or language testing when the clinician needs it to separate autism from a speech delay or an intellectual disability.
- A feedback session where the clinician explains the findings, followed by a written report.
Ask how long the report takes. The appointment isn't the finish line, and an insurer can't authorize therapy from a verbal result.
Paying for it in Denver
Denver County sits in Region 4 of Colorado's Medicaid system, administered by Colorado Access, reachable at (800) 511-5010. Some Denver families are instead enrolled with Elevate Medicaid Choice through Denver Health, at (855) 281-2418. Check which one is on your card before you start calling practices, because it decides who authorizes services.
If you're unsure, the Health First Colorado member contact center is (800) 221-3943.
One Health First Colorado rule is worth knowing early, because it changes what you do while you wait. The state says a child doesn't need an autism diagnosis to receive behavioral therapy:
"Does my child have to have a diagnosis of Autism to qualify for the services? No. Behavioral therapy is available to all children currently eligible for Health First Colorado when the service is medically necessary."
Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, Pediatric Behavioral Therapies
That applies to Health First Colorado only. Commercial plans in Denver generally do want the diagnosis on file first. For the full cost picture, including published Colorado prices and the free routes, see our guide to what an autism evaluation costs in Colorado.
What happens after the diagnosis
The written report is the document that unlocks services. Once you have it, most Denver families move to ABA therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, or some combination, and the report is what an insurer reads when it decides how many hours to authorize.
Budding Futures ABA is enrolled with Health First Colorado under Provider Types 83 and 84, and delivers ABA therapy in the family's home and inside school settings across Denver. Rachel Blackburn, BCBA, is the clinical director who reviews each plan.
You don't have to wait for the report to start the paperwork. We can look at your coverage now and tell you what your plan is likely to authorize, so nothing starts from zero on the day the diagnosis lands. If you already have a report in hand, here is what in-home ABA therapy in Denver looks like week to week.
Questions Denver parents ask
Who can diagnose autism in Denver?
How long is the wait for an autism evaluation in Denver?
Can I get my toddler evaluated in Denver?
Does Denver Public Schools test for autism?
Sources
Verified August 4, 2026. Provider details come from each practice's own public website. Waits, fees and coverage change, so confirm anything that affects a decision.
- HCPF, Pediatric Behavioral Therapies: Health First Colorado coverage and the medical-necessity rule.
- HCPF, Accountable Care Collaborative Phase III: the four Regional Accountable Entities effective July 1, 2025.
- Colorado Access: Region 4 coverage of Denver, Adams, Arapahoe and Douglas counties.
- Colorado Department of Education, Child Find: free evaluation from age 3.
Once your child has a diagnosis, we can start at home.
Budding Futures provides in-home ABA therapy across Denver. Tell us where you are in the process and we will tell you honestly what comes next.