A new Kansas law that came into effect on July 1, 2016 restricted insurance reimbursement for autism service providers to two types of professionals:
- Anyone licensed under Kansas’ Applied Behavior Analysis Licensure Act
- Anyone granted an autism services waiver by the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services
This new law essentially means that state-licensed behavior analysts are one of the only types of professionals in the state that can be reimbursed by insurance companies for their work providing autism services.
And that work has drastically expanded thanks to increased coverage of insurance for autistic children and young adults. In 2010 Kansas’ legislature passed a law that requires health insurance plans for state employees to include coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of autism-spectrum disorders for individuals up the age of 19 years old. Specifically, this law says behavior analysts can be reimbursed up to:
- $36,000 annually per child, for those aged up to 7 years old
- $27,000 annually per child aged 7-19 years old
In addition to Kansas’ state employee insurance plans, large employer plans, small employer plans, and individual insurance plans are all required to reimburse for autism treatment provided by behavior analysts.
Another boon for behavior analysts came with the 2009 amendment of a law that added autism-spectrum disorders to the list of mental illnesses covered by the following:
- Group health insurance policies
- Medical service plans and contracts
- Hospital service contracts
- HMOs (health maintenance organizations)
As of December 2016, the average salary for behavior analysts in Kansas’ eight largest cities was $ 58,657 for that had been in the field of ten years, with annual earnings increasing by an average of about $1000 per year.
Salaries for Behavior Analyst with a Decade of Experience in Kansas’ Major Cities
Shown here are salary figures for behavior analysts with 10 years of experience in Kansas’ largest cities. Each list provides an overall salary range (from median to 90th-percentile) for behavior analysts with a decade of experience, followed by the average in each employment sector (December 2016).
Wichita – $59,099 – $79,000
- Company – $62,025
- Private practice – $61,427
- Government – $61,247
- School district – $58,933
- Non-profit – $58,011
Overland Park – $59,714 – $77,000
- Company – $62,425
- Private practice – $62,131
- Government – $62,040
- School district – $60,215
- Non-profit – $58,836
Kansas City – $59,711 – $79,000
- Company – $61,989
- Private practice – $61,560
- Government – $61,420
- School district – $59,349
- Non-profit – $58,163
Olathe – $58,398 – $75,000
- Company – $60,975
- Private practice – $60,487
- Government – $60,305
- School district – $58,164
- Non-profit – $57,252
Topeka – $60,741 – $83,000
- Company – $62,843
- Private practice – $62,044
- Government – $61,964
- School district – $59,627
- Non-profit – $58,572
Lawrence – $56,237 – $74,000
- Company – $60,459
- Private practice – $59,819
- Government – $59,537
- School district – $57,027
- Non-profit – $56,512
Shawnee – $59,728 – $77,000
- Company – $61,909
- Private practice – $61,530
- Government – $61,314
- School district – $59,223
- Non-profit – $58,236
Manhattan – $55,626 – $74,000
- Company – $59,092
- Private practice – $58,306
- Government – $57,922
- School district – $55,097
- Non-profit – $54,968
Starting Salaries for Board Certified Behavior Analysts in Kansas by City
Shown here are entry-level behavior analyst salary figures for the largest cities in Kansas by sector. Each list provides an overall salary range (from median to 90th-percentile) for each city, followed by the average in each employment sector (December 2016).
Wichita – $49,032 – $65,000
- Company – $51,012
- Private practice – $50,533
- Government – $50,327
- School district – $48,401
- Non-profit – $47,703
Overland Park – $48,155 – $62,000
- Company – $51,084
- Private practice – $50,858
- Government – $50,727
- School district – $49,215
- Non-profit – $48,144
Kansas City – $48,583 – $64,000
- Company – $50,710
- Private practice – $50,374
- Government – $50,198
- School district – $48,474
- Non-profit – $47,570
Olathe – $47,524 – $61,000
- Company – $49,902
- Private practice – $49,516
- Government – $49,312
- School district – $47,541
- Non-profit – $46,850
Topeka – $46,743 – $64,000
- Company – $48,920
- Private practice – $48,307
- Government – $48,210
- School district – $46,372
- Non-profit – $45,604
Lawrence – $45,612 – $60,000
- Company – $47,825
- Private practice – $47,331
- Government – $47,065
- School district – $45,054
- Non-profit – $44,695
Shawnee – $48,112 – $62,000
- Company – $49,940
- Private practice – $49,646
- Government – $49,423
- School district – $47,714
- Non-profit – $46,970
Manhattan – $46,133 – $61,000
- Company – $47,890
- Private practice – $47,267
- Government – $46,899
- School district – $44,582
- Non-profit – $44,536
Salary data for entry-level and experienced applied behavior analysts was sourced from PayScale.com in December 2016. Using its daily-updated database of over 54 million salary profiles, PayScale’s proprietary algorithms provide access to real-time salary information.