The healthcare industry has seen significant growth, particularly in autism and fertility services, largely due to the expansion of insurance coverage. This trend has provided critical support for companies offering services like Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy, which has become a vital treatment for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Founded five years ago, ABA Centers of America initially employed only its founder. Today, the company employs over 1,000 staff members and boasts the region’s best growth rate. Chief Executive Officer Jason Barker attributes the company’s success to the growing demand for services for individuals with autism, driven by an increase in diagnoses. ABA Centers’ services, which include one-on-one sessions with behavior therapists, have positioned the company as a leader in the sector, recording a remarkable 595.3% compound annual growth rate between 2020 and 2023. This performance earned ABA Centers the top spot in the Financial Times’ ranking of the Americas’ 300 fastest-growing companies.
Healthcare and life sciences are among the top sectors driving this growth, with nearly 10% of the fastest-growing companies in the region coming from this industry. The success of companies like ABA Centers is closely tied to the expansion of insurance plans, which now include autism-related therapies. Legislation requiring corporate health plans to cover autism treatment has been instrumental. By 2019, every state in the U.S. had enacted mandates ensuring ABA therapy coverage, enabling families to access care they otherwise couldn’t afford.
Barker highlights the transformative effect of this insurance coverage: “All of a sudden, you have kids who, otherwise, would have gone without care because their parents couldn’t afford it, now receiving the therapy they need.”
The rise in autism diagnoses, with more than 3% of school-aged children in the U.S. diagnosed with ASD, reflects the need for greater access to diagnostic and treatment services. A 2022 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study noted the increased prevalence of ASD among eight-year-olds, emphasizing the need for “enhanced planning to provide equitable diagnostic, treatment and support services” for all children with ASD.
While ABA Centers strives to meet this need—offering therapy sessions within 47 days of initial contact and providing up to 40 hours of therapy per week—other sectors are also seeing increased demand due to expanded insurance coverage. Surrogacy and egg donation services, particularly those targeting specific groups like military families, have surged in recent years. For example, Patriot Conceptions, which specializes in assisting military families, uses artificial intelligence to match surrogates with intended parents, improving the speed and success rate of these matches. Founded by U.S. Army veteran Haotian Bai, Patriot Conceptions experienced a compound annual growth rate of 121.3% from 2020 to 2023.
The fertility sector, in particular, has benefited from expanded insurance coverage. According to Mercer, nearly 70% of U.S. companies with more than 20,000 employees, and almost half of those with more than 500 employees, now offer insurance for in vitro fertilization (IVF). This is double the coverage seen five years ago. The rise in fertility treatments also correlates with a global trend where one in six people experiences fertility challenges, according to the World Health Organization.
Progyny, a company founded in 2008, has also thrived in this environment. With its comprehensive approach to fertility and women’s health care, including postpartum and menopausal care, Progyny now serves millions of women across the U.S. CEO Peter Anevski notes that despite the growing awareness of fertility challenges, “unnecessary coverage gaps” still exist, but the company’s expansion is a sign that employers and health plans are increasingly recognizing the need for comprehensive solutions. With more than 530 employer clients and 6.7 million covered lives, Progyny’s growth is expected to continue.
As the healthcare industry continues to evolve, insurance plans remain a key factor in driving the success of services for those in need, from autism therapy to fertility treatments. The increase in coverage not only aids businesses in these sectors but also improves the quality of life for countless families seeking essential care.
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