Salaries for Applied Behavior Analysts in Louisiana

Between 2008 and 2012 Louisiana’s legislature has passed several laws that ensure a stable and continued income for board certified behavior analysts (BCBA®s).

In 2008 it passed House Bill Number 508, which resulted in:

  • Defining the treatment of autism spectrum disorders to include applied behavior analysis
  • Requiring health insurance policies, including HMOs (health maintenance organizations) to provide coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders in people up to the age of 17 (this age has been subsequently raised to 21)
  • Stipulating that the diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders for an individual is capped at a maximum reimbursement rate of $36,000 per year

Today this means state employee health insurance plans require coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of autism, as do large and small employer health insurance plans.

In 2012 two additional pieces of legislation were passed with the following effect:

  • Raising the age limit of coverage for autism treatment from 17 to 21 years old
  • Removing a lifetime reimbursement cap for autism diagnosis treatment, which had previously been $140,000

After a decade of experience behavior analysts in Louisiana earn an average of approximately $57,246. That’s an incremental increase of around $950 per year from the average starting salary.

  • On average the highest paying sectors for BCBA®s in Louisiana are companies, private practice, and government
  • New Orleans has the highest median entry-level salary statewide, followed by Lake Charles
  • Lake Charles has the highest median salary in the state for 10-year-experienced BCBA®s, followed by Baton Rouge
  • Lafayette has the largest salary increase in the state between its entry-level and 10-year-experienced BCBA®s

Salaries for Experienced Behavior Analyst in Louisiana’s Major Cities

Shown here are salary figures for BCBA®s with 10-years of experience in Louisiana’s largest cities. Each list provides an overall salary range (from median to 90th-percentile) for behavior analysts with 10-years of experience, followed by the average in each employment sector (December 2016).

New Orleans – $58,753 – $79,000

  • Company – $62,356
  • Private practice – $61,925
  • Government – $61,814
  • School district – $59,802
  • Non-profit – $58,459

Baton Rouge – $59,763 – $82,000

  • Company – $62,329
  • Private practice – $61,761
  • Government – $61,639
  • School district – $59,520
  • Non-profit – $58,177

Shreveport – $55,010 – $73,000

  • Company – $59,311
  • Private practice – $58,793
  • Government – $58,377
  • School district – $55,810
  • Non-profit – $55,402

Lafayette – $58,624 – $82,000

  • Company – $62,484
  • Private practice – $61,755
  • Government – $61,553
  • School district – $59,151
  • Non-profit – $58,081

Lake Charles – $60,223 – $89,000

  • Company – $61,930
  • Government – $61,346
  • Private practice – $61,296
  • School district – $59,684
  • Non-profit – $57,640

Kenner – $56,467 – $75,000

  • Company – $60,747
  • Private practice – $60,100
  • Government – $59,763
  • School district – $57,155
  • Non-profit – $56,672

Monroe – $54,082 – $73,000

  • Company – $57,468
  • Private practice – $56,760
  • Government – $56,322
  • School district – $53,503
  • Non-profit – $53,361

Alexandria – $55,049 – $75,000

  • Company – $58,499
  • Private practice – $57,788
  • Government – $57,493
  • School district – $54,886
  • Non-profit – $54,419
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Starting Salaries for Board Certified Behavior Analyst in Louisiana by City

Shown here are entry-level BCBA® salary figures for the largest cities in Louisiana 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).

New Orleans – $50,649 – $68,000

  • Company – $51,605
  • Private practice – $51,262
  • Government – $51,116
  • School district – $49,415
  • Non-profit – $48,366

Baton Rouge – $49,919 – $69,000

  • Company – $50,581
  • Private practice – $50,134
  • Government – $49,987
  • School district – $48,226
  • Non-profit – $47,191

Shreveport – $47,415 – $64,000

  • Company – $49,298
  • Private practice – $48,884
  • Government – $48,478
  • School district – $46,303
  • Non-profit – $46,029

Lafayette – $46,798 – $66,000

  • Company – $49,894
  • Private practice – $49,326
  • Government – $49,114
  • School district – $47,149
  • Non-profit – $46,355

Lake Charles – $50,535 – $75,000

  • Company – $51,297
  • Private practice – $50,789
  • Government – $50,761
  • School district – $49,328
  • Non-profit – $47,720

Kenner – $47,960 – $64,000

  • Company – $49,409
  • Private practice – $48,897
  • Government – $48,576
  • School district – $46,416
  • Non-profit – $46,079

Monroe – $44,139 – $60,000

  • Company – $47,771
  • Private practice – $47,200
  • Government – $46,773
  • School district – $44,377
  • Non-profit – $44,331

Alexandria – $44,742 – $61,000

  • Company – $48,155
  • Private practice – $47,584
  • Government – $47,285
  • School district – $45,099
  • Non-profit – $44,778
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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.

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