Can a Palm Beach County family pay for aba therapy & counseling with scholarship funds?
It depends on the program: Unique Abilities can pay for it; PEP and Private School Scholarship cannot. The cards below give each program's rule.
Applied behavior analysis delivered by, or overseen by, a Board Certified Behavior Analyst; counseling from a licensed clinician is covered as well.
Not eligible under PEP.
Not an authorized category.
Which rules apply to aba therapy & counseling?
- When a registered behavior technician delivers sessions, a BCBA must supervise, and the BACB registry lets a family check credentials.
- Counseling is limited to licensed psychologists, school psychologists, mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists and clinical social workers.
- Anything an insurer has already reimbursed is off limits for the account.
What is not allowed for aba therapy & counseling?
- Unsupervised technicians
- Services insurance has already paid
How does aba therapy & counseling work for a Palm Beach County family?
35 Palm Beach County private schools report serving autism spectrum disorder. Some, such as Mountaineer's School of Autism and Boca School for Autism, are built around autism programming; ask any school whether ABA happens on campus and who bills for it.
How does a family buy aba therapy & counseling?
Look in MyScholarShop first, because its listings are pre-approved. Next try Find Providers in EMA, which lets the account pay tutors, therapists and instructors directly. If neither fits, pay by card, hold the itemized receipt and file for reimbursement. A purchase the guides do not list as eligible needs pre-authorization before you spend.
What can the funds pay for, and what can they not?
For this category, the table sets allowed purchases next to excluded ones.
| Can pay for | Cannot pay for |
|---|---|
| Unique Abilities: Applied behavior analysis delivered by, or overseen by, a Board Certified Behavior Analyst; counseling from a licensed clinician is covered as well. | Unsupervised technicians |
| Services insurance has already paid | |
| PEP: Not eligible under PEP. | |
| Private School Scholarship: Not an authorized category. |
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Sources: Step Up For Students purchasing guides for FES-UA, PEP and FTC/FES-EO (2025-26 editions) and its "Program Handbooks and Purchasing Guides: Summary of Changes" page (last modified October 22, 2026). These are summaries, not legal advice; your scholarship funding organization's current guide controls.