Growing pains for the autism treatment space, CEO says

Insurers, patients and families are going to demand more from autism treatment centers in the coming years, Derek Bullard, CEO of Already Autism Health, told Becker's. 

Already Autism Health operates 26 clinics in four states. The company is among the top 200 fastest-growing in the U.S., according to the Inc. 5000, and is the fourth-fastest growing behavioral health company. 

The applied behavioral analysis space for autism treatment is growing rapidly. The market is expected to grow from $4 billion in 2023 to $6 billion in 2032, according to a report from Global Market Insights. 

Mr. Bullard sat down with Becker's to discuss Already Autism Health's growth outlook and the challenges facing the autism treatment sector in the coming years. 

This conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity. 

Question: You're among the fastest-growing behavioral health companies. What's behind these results? 

Derek Bullard: The demand for autism services is really high. There's more evidence-based tools out there for diagnosing autism. The need for services is significant, and the amount of qualified providers still hasn't caught up to the need for services. For us, what's driven the growth has been the combination of a very senior leadership team in behavioral health. Most of us in our C-suite have in excess of 20 years, and in a few cases, close to 30 years experience in the space, which has been really helpful and driven a lot of our strategy and growth. The other piece is the demand and need for access to care, for children and families needing services all around the country is really significant. 

Q: The autism treatment sector is growing rapidly. Are there any growing pains you anticipate? 

DB: It feels a lot like behavioral health did to me in the early 2000s. I think at the time, you had a lot of folks that jumped into this space and put a shingle on the door, because the demand for services was so high, they were able to be financially in a pretty good spot, but not necessarily running a great business, or providing great clinical services. 

The autism field has exploded in the last five years. It feels like we're at that stage where you've got a lot of smaller providers out there that haven't had to get better. You've had some larger providers on the PE side that have had some missteps as well, and because the demand for services is so high, have been able to grow really quickly. I think we're at that point where the really good providers, that are focused on clinical outcomes, consumer experience, client experience, and running a good, solid business — those companies will be around. I think those companies will continue to grow and there will be a place for those companies. 

Those, regardless of their size, that don't focus on clinical outcomes, client experience and what payers need, I think we'll see a lot that will go by the wayside in the next few years. 

It feels like payers are asking better questions. I think our clients are asking better questions, because they have options, whereas five to six years ago, many of them were sitting on a waitlist. Our consumers are more knowledgeable now about what to expect. I would expect over the next three to five years, there will certainly be more options, but better options. I think our payers will be more demanding, requiring more of providers, which I think is a good thing. 

Q: What's your five-year outlook for Already Autism Health? 

DB: Our initial focus is to continue growth. We believe we can double our current size in our geographic areas. It's to really continue to grow in those areas, increase access to care. We don't have aspirations to do M&A at this point. Our growth will primarily be de novo and organic.

Copyright © 2025 Becker's Healthcare. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy. Cookie Policy. Linking and Reprinting Policy.

 

Top 40 articles from the past 6 months

Featured Whitepapers

Featured Webinars