State guide

South Carolina

Programs, dollars, and people that serve autism families in South Carolina. Federal protections always apply on top of what you see here.

South Carolina overview

South Carolina's Department of Disabilities and Special Needs (DDSN) administers Medicaid HCBS waiver services. DDSN is organized into Regional Centers statewide — contact your regional center for eligibility and waiver enrollment. South Carolina's waiver waitlists are significant; apply early. For early intervention, BabyNet is South Carolina's birth-to-three program. PRO-Parents of South Carolina is the state's PTI center. The Autism Society of South Carolina and the Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital in Charleston provide statewide family support and clinical resources.

Verify program names, URLs, and eligibility on official .gov sites — these change.

⏰ Act now — Medicaid waiver waitlist

Community Support Waiver and Intellectual Disability / Related Disabilities Waiver

Typical wait: Varies — one phone call starts the process

Call 800-289-7012 and allow about 15 minutes. You will be asked about residency and the disability, and you will choose three Intake Service Providers from a list read to you. Ask for the Autism Eligibility Coordinator.

South Carolina's PDD autism waiver ended in 2017. ABA moved to the state-plan Autism Spectrum Disorder services program.

Apply or learn more →Compare all 50 states

Statewide resources

These four programs exist in every state and are the fastest entry points for most families.

Parent Training & Information (PTI)

PRO-Parents of South Carolina

(800) 759-4776

Federally funded — free help with IEPs, evaluations, and special ed rights.

Insurance Coverage

Whether private insurance must cover autism treatment in South Carolina.

South Carolina requires insurance to cover autism treatment

S.C. Code § 38-71-280 (Ryan's Law) · enacted 2007

Ages:
Under 16 — but read the next sentence, because it is the harder gate. To be eligible at all, the child must have been DIAGNOSED at age eight or younger. A child diagnosed at nine has no claim under this mandate however severe their needs.
Limits:
$50,000 a year for behavioral therapy, adjusted every 1 January for CPI. So the current figure is higher than $50,000 and rises each year — ask your insurer for this year's number rather than assuming the headline figure.

Self-funded employer plans (ERISA) are typically exempt — ask your HR department which type of plan you have.

How to use it, and how to appeal a denial →

Medicaid Waiver

Home and community-based services (HCBS) for autism families in South Carolina.

Community Support Waiver and Intellectual Disability / Related Disabilities Waiver

Department of Disabilities and Special Needs (DDSN), through Intake Service Providers and local disabilities boards

South Carolinians with an intellectual disability, autism, or a related disability, along with their families.

How autism qualifies

South Carolina is unusually well set up for autism specifically: it maintains dedicated Autism Eligibility Coordinators, and eligibility can be established either by a record review or by an evaluation at the Carolina Autism Resource and Evaluation (CARE) Center. A formal ASD diagnosis from a qualified professional — developmental pediatrician, psychologist, psychiatrist or comparable specialist — is the starting point. Ask for the Autism Eligibility Coordinator by name when you call; it is a real role, not a courtesy.

What it can pay for

  • Behaviour support services
  • Respite
  • Personal care and attendant care
  • Day services and supported employment
  • Environmental modifications
  • Assistive technology

How the waiting list is ordered

The most consequential thing to understand in South Carolina is which program you actually need. The Pervasive Developmental Disorder waiver — the one that funded up to 40 hours a week of early intensive behavioral intervention for children aged 3 to 10 — was terminated on 31 December 2017, and everyone on its waiting list was moved to a processing list for a new state-plan Autism Spectrum Disorder services benefit. That means ABA in South Carolina now comes through state-plan Medicaid rather than through a waiver, and the waiver is for the other things: respite, personal care, day services, environmental modifications. Families who go looking for "the autism waiver" are looking for a program that closed nearly a decade ago, and older directories still list it.

How to apply

Call DDSN on 1-800-289-7012 for anyone aged three or over. The call takes about 15 minutes and covers residency and the disability, and you will select three Intake Service Providers from a list. The Intake Provider then guides you through eligibility at no cost. Messages left out of hours are returned within two business days.

1-800-289-7012Full South Carolina waiver detail and sources →

Verified August 2026 against 3 official sources.

Medicaid Managed Care

How Medicaid pays for ABA therapy in South Carolina.

Healthy Connections Medicaid

ABA covered: Under 21

Find or choose your plan

South Carolina Healthy Connections Choices (enrollment broker)

(877) 552-4642Official page →

Plans in this state

  • Absolute Total Care
  • BlueChoice (Healthy Blue)
  • Humana Healthy Horizons
  • Molina
1 more — see South Carolina's full plan list →

Most Healthy Connections Medicaid members are enrolled in one of five health plans (MCOs), and you can choose one at SCChoices.com. The state's autism services manual covers medically necessary autism treatment, including ABA, for members through age 20 with an autism diagnosis, and all autism services need prior authorization. If your child is in a health plan, ABA providers follow that plan's own rules.

⚠️ Prior authorization is required before starting ABA services.

Checked against 5 official sources, September 2026. Plans change when states rebid contracts, so confirm with the state.

South Carolina guides

Deeper guides where the facts are genuinely specific to South Carolina.

Financial help for autism in South Carolina

SSI, Medicaid, the waiver and what insurers must cover — and which to apply for first.

Autism evaluation in South Carolina

The two free routes, the deadlines they run against, and verified diagnostic providers.

South Carolina insurance mandate

The statute, the caps, and how to complain when a plan ignores it.