Younger than 21
The EIDBI program covers young people under 21. At Ability Avenues we serve children ages 2–12 — if your child is older, the benefit still exists, and another provider can serve them.
EIDBI services in Minnesota
EIDBI — Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention — is Minnesota's Medicaid benefit that covers intensive therapy for young people with autism or related conditions, often at no cost to families. Ability Avenues is an enrolled EIDBI provider serving children ages 2–12: at our Golden Valley center and in homes across most of Minnesota.
Does your child qualify? Four requirements.
A child is eligible for EIDBI when all four are true: they are younger than 21, they have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder or a related condition, a completed CMDE establishes that EIDBI services are medically necessary, and they are enrolled in Medical Assistance, MinnesotaCare, or MA through the TEFRA option.
An autism or related-condition diagnosis
A diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or a related condition. Not there yet? Our autism diagnosis guide walks through getting evaluated in Minnesota.
A completed CMDE
A Comprehensive Multi-Disciplinary Evaluation (CMDE) — the assessment that establishes EIDBI is medically necessary for your child. We arrange the CMDE through independent partner agencies as part of intake.
Qualifying health coverage
Enrollment in Medical Assistance (MA), MinnesotaCare, or MA through the TEFRA option. No MA yet? There's a real path — see coverage and funding or the TEFRA section below.
Not sure about one of these? That's exactly what the first call is for — we'll walk through all four with you, and missing pieces are usually solvable. The eligibility checklist covers edge cases in depth.
Criteria per Minnesota DHS, verified July 2026.
What EIDBI actually is
EIDBI is a Minnesota Medical Assistance benefit — a funding program, not a therapy. It pays for the evaluation (the CMDE), the treatment plan (the ITP), intensive one-on-one and group intervention, family training, and the coordination that holds it all together.
That distinction trips up almost everyone, so here it is plainly: when people talk about “getting EIDBI,” they usually mean getting therapy that EIDBI pays for. New to the whole topic? Start with what is EIDBI; comparing it to ABA, read EIDBI vs. ABA.
EIDBI
The benefit that pays
Minnesota's Medicaid program covering intensive early intervention for young people with autism or related conditions.
ABA
The therapy it pays for
The most common treatment delivered under EIDBI — and the one we provide, in play-based, BCBA-led form.
EIDBI also approves other modalities — see the funding section below.
The EIDBI services we provide
EIDBI is more than therapy hours. These are the covered services we deliver — from the first evaluation to the coordination around your child's school.
Every service is BCBA-supervised, and everything starts with one call — see how intake works.
CMDE facilitation
The CMDE is EIDBI's entry evaluation, and arranging one is often the most confusing step. We arrange your child's CMDE through independent partner agencies as part of intake — evaluators we vouch for but don't employ — so you don't have to find one on your own.
Individual Treatment Plan (ITP) development
A Board Certified Behavior Analyst turns the CMDE's findings into an Individual Treatment Plan: specific goals, chosen with you, that every session works toward. The ITP is what EIDBI authorizes — and it's reviewed and updated as your child grows.
Intensive intervention — individual and group
The therapy itself: one-on-one, play-based ABA sessions, plus planned small-group work when peer goals call for it — at our Golden Valley center or in your home. EIDBI covers both settings the same way.
Family and caregiver training and counseling
EIDBI treats parents as part of the team, and so do we. Caregiver training teaches you the same strategies your child's therapists use, scheduled around what works for your family — so progress doesn't stay at the therapy table.
Care coordination
Your child's world is bigger than therapy. We coordinate with schools, county case workers, and other providers so plans point the same direction — IEP goals and ITP goals don't have to live in separate universes.
What EIDBI costs your family
For eligible families, EIDBI services are covered by Medical Assistance — often at no cost to the family. There are three ways into that coverage, and we confirm which one fits your child before services begin, so nothing lands on you as a surprise.
Straight MA
Already enrolled? You're set.
If your child has fee-for-service Medical Assistance, EIDBI is a covered benefit. We bill Straight MA directly — the first call is mostly about scheduling, not paperwork.
MA through TEFRA
The path most families don't know about.
TEFRA lets a child with a disability qualify for MA counting only the child's own income — not the family's. And since July 2023, Minnesota no longer charges parental fees for children on MA-TEFRA living at home. Our TEFRA guide explains it step by step.
MinnesotaCare
Also a qualifying program.
MinnesotaCare enrollment qualifies a child for the EIDBI benefit, and we bill it through Blue Plus— Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota's public-programs plan. See the insurance and funding page for how to enroll.
What we bill: we accept Straight MA and Blue Plus. The full picture — including what to do if you have commercial insurance — is on the insurance and funding page. TEFRA details per Minnesota DHS.
The therapies EIDBI approves
As of July 1, 2025, Minnesota approves four EIDBI treatment modalities — the PLAY Project and Early Social Interaction (ESI) were removed from the list by the 2025 Legislature. Current list per Minnesota DHS.
One planning note: Minnesota paused new EIDBI provider enrollments on July 1, 2025. Ability Avenues is already enrolled and continues serving families as usual.
- ABAApplied Behavior Analysis — the modality we provide
- ESDMEarly Start Denver Model
- DIR/FloortimeDevelopmental, play-based model
- RDIRelationship Development Intervention
marks the modality we provide.
How to start EIDBI with Ability Avenues
Five steps, and we do the heavy lifting on the paperwork. An honest note up front: some steps have waiting built in that no provider controls — we'll always tell you where things stand.
Call us — or send the form
The first conversation needs no paperwork at all. We'll listen, answer the eligibility and cost questions above for your situation, and give you a current timeline.
We check coverage together
We verify your child's Medical Assistance or Blue Plus coverage. If your family isn't on MA yet, we'll point you to the TEFRA or MinnesotaCare path that fits — and help you make sense of the application.
The CMDE happens
We arrange the Comprehensive Multi-Disciplinary Evaluation through independent partner agencies. This is the evaluation that establishes medical necessity — the formal green light for EIDBI services.
Your BCBA builds the ITP
A Board Certified Behavior Analyst develops your child's Individual Treatment Plan with you: the goals, the setting your family chooses — center or home — and the schedule.
Services begin
Sessions start in the one setting you chose — our Golden Valley center or your home. Caregiver training and plan reviews are built in from day one.
The step-by-step detail — what to have ready, who you'll talk to, what happens after each call — lives on the intake process page.
Official EIDBI resources
Don't take our word for any of this. These are the official state sources behind every claim on this page — bookmark-worthy for the road ahead.
- Minnesota DHS — the EIDBI benefit
The program's official home: eligibility, covered services, and policy updates, straight from the Department of Human Services.
- Minnesota Autism Portal
The state's hub for autism resources — services, legislative updates, and guidance for families at every stage.
- Help Me Grow Minnesota
Free early-intervention referrals for children under 5 — no diagnosis required, and parents can self-refer. The right first stop for very young children.
- County and Tribal health care offices
Contact information for the county and Tribal offices that process Medical Assistance applications, including MA-TEFRA.
- Disability Hub MN — MA-TEFRA
Plain-language help with the TEFRA option, plus free one-on-one navigation support by phone or chat.
EIDBI questions, answered plainly
The questions Minnesota families ask most about the EIDBI benefit — with honest answers. More on the full FAQ page.
Is EIDBI the same as ABA?
No — and the difference matters when you're reading provider websites. EIDBI is Minnesota's Medicaid benefit: the program that pays. ABA is the most common therapy delivered under it: the thing your child actually does. We provide ABA therapy funded through EIDBI. The EIDBI vs. ABA guide goes deeper.
Who qualifies for EIDBI?
Four things, all of them: younger than 21; a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder or a related condition; a completed CMDE establishing medical necessity; and enrollment in Medical Assistance, MinnesotaCare, or MA through TEFRA. The full checklist — with what to do about any missing piece — is at the top of this page. (The program covers young people under 21; we serve children ages 2–12.)
Does EIDBI cover in-home therapy?
Yes — same benefit, same coverage, whether sessions happen at our Golden Valley center or at your kitchen table. See how in-home therapy works. Funding never decides the setting for you: you choose one of the two, and your child's program runs there.
What if we don't have Medical Assistance yet?
That's more common than you'd think, and there's a real path: TEFRA lets a child with a disability qualify for MA counting only the child's own income — not yours — and since July 2023 there are no parental fees for children on MA-TEFRA living at home. MinnesotaCare also qualifies. We help you make sense of the application during intake.
How long does EIDBI approval take?
Honestly: it varies, and we'd rather tell you the truth than quote a number that won't hold. The steps run in order — coverage enrollment if you need it, then the CMDE, then authorization — and each has its own timeline. What we can promise is that we start the process on the first call, handle the parts we can, and give you a current, realistic picture up front.
Can my child get EIDBI and school services at the same time?
Yes. EIDBI is a medical benefit; an IEP is an educationalplan — separate systems, and they can run at the same time. Care coordination is part of what we provide, so the two plans support each other instead of colliding. Our IEP parent guide covers the school side.
Not sure where to start? That's okay. Most families aren't.
Call us. We'll help you figure out eligibility, coverage, and next steps. The first conversation needs no paperwork at all.