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California Autism Service Provider Advocacy Update - REDUX

California Autism Service Provider Advocacy Update - REDUX

Recorded January 19, 2022

Abstract

By popular demand, CASP and CalABA are providing time to dive deeper into the information provided during our December 2022 webinar, “Insurance Legislation, Regulation, and MHPAEA: What providers need to know.”

We will be answering questions specific to topics covered in the December 2022 webinar, including:

  • SB 855/Mental Health Parity/Generally Accepted Standards of Care
  • AB 1324/Treatment Authorizations
  • AB 2581/Credentialing
  • Network Adequacy

Presenters

Allyson Moore

Allyson Moore, MS, BCBA, LMFT, is the Chief Professional Standards Officer for the Center for Applied Behavior Analysis (CABA). She collaborates with leadership team members in developing and implementing clinical best practices. Allyson serves as President of the Association of Professional Behavior Analysts (APBA) and on the ABA Coding Coalition as a representative of APBA. She is a member of the Council of Autism Service Providers (CASP) special interest groups of Documentation, Outcomes, Multispecialty Practices, and California Advocacy. She also serves on the Health Insurance Ad Hoc committee for the California Association for Behavior Analysis (CalABA).

She has extensive experience serving individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other neurodevelopmental and mental disorders. She works in coordination and collaboration with primary caregivers, stakeholders, and other related public and private agencies.

Michelle Heid

Michelle Heid, MA, BCBA, is the Director of Advanced Behavioral Pathways, which provides services to a range of individuals, mostly in the northern Los Angeles County area of California. Michelle serves as the Public Policy Chair for California Association for Behavior Analysis (CalABA) and is a member of several other professional groups focusing primarily on ensuring quality services are available to all who would benefit from behavior analysis.

Michelle joined the field of behavior analysis in 2006 and, since that time, has had the opportunity to work with people of all ages in schools, family homes, residential homes, day programs, and community settings. Michelle focuses her work using behavioral science to assist people with achieving their goals, including clients, families, and those she mentors. Through her work, she has become active in public policy to support both the disability community and behavior-analytic practitioners. In her free time, Michelle can be found spending time with her family, reading, hiking on Endor, or anticipating the release of any Star Wars-related spin-offs. 

Yvonne Bruinsma

Yvonne Bruinsma, Ph.D., BCBA-D, founded In STEPPS in 2010. She has more than 25 years of experience in the field. She previously gained extensive experience as the clinical director and clinical manager at several agencies and brought PRT to the Netherlands. She has been an active researcher and continues publishing in the field. Yvonne has written articles in peer-reviewed journals and, in 2015, wrote and published a seminal article with other top researchers in autism treatment about Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions such as PRT.

Yvonne also has co-written a book about Naturalistic Developmental Behavior Interventions (NDBI) currently in press. She has worked in a variety of settings, including developmental centers, group homes for adults with developmental disabilities, vocational sites, and schools. She earned her master’s in developmental psychology from the University of Leiden, the Netherlands, and her master’s and a doctorate in special education, developmental disabilities, from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Yvonne was certified as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst-Doctoral (BCBA-D) in 2008.

Karen Fessel

Karen Fessel, DrPH, is the proud parent of two young adults, one of whom is on the autism spectrum. Karen founded the Mental Health and Autism Insurance Project (MHAIP) nearly 15 years ago after successfully securing services for her child on the spectrum. She currently serves as the executive director of MHAIP, a non-profit that helps families secure mental health and autism treatments through insurance by writing appeals, fielding questions from the community, putting out a quarterly newsletter, and educating regulators and legislators on the insurance needs of consumers.

She serves on the CAL ABA Insurance Ad Hoc Committee and the Government Affairs Committee of the National Association for Therapeutic Schools and Programs. She has worked on getting both the CA Autism Insurance mandate and the updated CA Mental Health Parity Act passed into law and fully implemented. Karen has a Doctorate in Public Health from UC Berkeley.

Judith Ursitti

Judith Ursitt, CPA, is Vice President of Government Affairs for the Council of Autism Service Providers.

If you already paid for the live event and would like to re-watch the recording, please email mwasmer@casproviders.org for a direct link. 
Non-Member Price: $10
Member Price: $0
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