If your baby or toddler is not meeting milestones, or has just been diagnosed with autism, Early Steps is usually the first Florida program to call. It is free to families, you do not need a doctor to refer, and services come to your child's everyday places. This guide explains how Early Steps works using the Florida Department of Health's Early Steps Policy Handbook (updated 14 October 2026) and the state law behind it, section 391.308 of the Florida Statutes.
What is Early Steps?
Early Steps is Florida's program under Part C of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which funds early intervention for infants and toddlers. The Florida Department of Health runs it statewide through local Early Steps offices, each hosted by a hospital, university or nonprofit and covering one or more counties.
Early Steps serves children from birth to 36 months. It focuses on helping families support their child's development in daily routines: play, meals, bath time, outings. A service coordinator helps you through the process, and a team plans services with you.
Who qualifies for Early Steps?
A child can qualify in one of two ways.
1. A developmental delay
Under the handbook, a child is eligible when testing and informed clinical opinion show a delay of:
- 1.5 standard deviations below the mean in two or more developmental areas, or
- 2.0 standard deviations below the mean in one or more areas.
The five areas are cognitive, physical (including vision and hearing), communication, social or emotional, and adaptive (self-help skills). "Informed clinical opinion" means the team's professional judgment can establish eligibility even when test scores alone do not. Medical and other records from the past 90 days can also be used, so your child may not need to repeat every test.
2. An established condition
Some diagnoses qualify a child without any delay testing. The handbook's list of established conditions includes genetic and metabolic disorders, neurological disorders, autism spectrum disorder, severe attachment disorder, vision or hearing impairments, and very low birth weight (under 1,200 grams). For most conditions, a licensed physician must confirm the diagnosis in writing. For autism, the handbook allows a health care practitioner acting within their scope of practice to confirm it.
That means a toddler with an autism diagnosis qualifies for Early Steps without having to show a delay on testing. A toddler who is still waiting for an autism evaluation can qualify through the delay route instead. Early Steps has no income requirement.
How do I refer my child?
Anyone can make a referral, including parents, grandparents, caregivers, friends and health care providers. No doctor's referral is needed. You can:
- call the statewide Early Steps line at 1-800-218-0001;
- use the online referral form at floridaearlysteps.com; or
- contact your local Early Steps office directly.
Have ready your child's name and date of birth, your contact details and county, a short description of your concerns, and any diagnosis or doctor's reports. Our step-by-step guide to referring your child includes a phone script.
What happens after the referral? The 45-day timeline
Federal and Florida rules set a clock. Within 45 calendar days of the day the local office receives your referral, the evaluation and assessment must be completed and the team must meet with you to write the first Individualized Family Support Plan (IFSP). In practice the steps are:
- Intake call: a staff member gathers information and explains your rights.
- Evaluation and assessment: professionals look at your child's development in all five areas, using records where possible.
- Eligibility decision.
- IFSP meeting: you and the team agree on outcomes and services.
One exception: if a referral reaches Early Steps fewer than 45 days before the child's third birthday, Early Steps does not have to evaluate. With your consent, it refers your child to the school district instead. If your child is close to 3, refer as soon as you can. See the 45-day timeline in detail.
Does Early Steps cost anything?
No. The handbook states that Early Steps' system of payments "does not include any sliding or cost participation fees," and that parents "are not charged any out-of-pocket costs" for Part C services. Child find, evaluation and assessment, service coordination and IFSP development are free. Inability to pay never delays or denies services.
Early Steps does use public and private insurance, with your consent, to help pay for services. If you decline to let Early Steps bill your insurance, your child still receives every service on the IFSP. Our article Is Early Steps really free? explains how insurance billing works.
What is an IFSP, and what services can it include?
The IFSP is a written plan built around your family. It records your child's current development, the outcomes you want, the services that will help, how often and where they happen, and who provides them. The IFSP must be reviewed at least every six months.
Services are matched to your child's needs. The handbook (Policy 6.1.1) lists the services every local program must make available, including special instruction, speech-language pathology, occupational and physical therapy, family training, counseling and home visits, psychological services (including mental health and behavioral services), assistive technology, audiology, vision services, translation and interpretation, and service coordination. The list is not exhaustive; your IFSP team decides which services your child receives. Florida law says services are delivered, to the extent possible, in the child's natural environment, meaning home, child care or other everyday settings, and that being unable to provide a service in the natural environment is not enough reason to deny it. See your child's IFSP explained.
Can my toddler get Early Steps and private ABA at the same time?
Often, yes. Early Steps and ABA (applied behavior analysis) are different services from different funders. Early Steps services center on coaching families in daily routines; ask your local office what behavioral support it offers. Many families of autistic toddlers combine Early Steps services with ABA paid by private insurance or self-pay. When both are involved, coordinating goals and schedules matters, and your child's day should not become overloaded. Ask your service coordinator how to note outside services on the IFSP. See Early Steps and private ABA.
What happens when my child turns 3?
Early Steps ends at 36 months. Florida starts the hand-off early:
- At least 90 days before the third birthday, the local office begins transition planning. The transition plan is written between 9 months and 90 days before the birthday.
- Unless you opt out, Early Steps notifies your school district that your child may be eligible for preschool services, and with your approval sets up a transition conference with the district.
- By the third birthday, if your child is eligible, the district must have an IEP (or an IFSP) in place. If the birthday falls in summer, the IEP team decides when services start.
- You can ask the district to invite your Early Steps service coordinator to the first IEP meeting.
Florida law also describes an "Extended Option" that would let some children stay in Early Steps past age 3, but Early Steps says it is not being implemented because of a lack of resources. Do not plan around it. Our turning 3 checklist walks through the hand-off.
Where is my local Early Steps office?
Local offices are run by host organizations. Two that serve Hope Center areas:
- Treasure Coast Early Steps (Easterseals Florida): Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties, 561-882-6426.
- Bay Area Early Steps (USF Health): Hillsborough and Polk counties.
For other counties, call 1-800-218-0001 or use the "Contact a Local Office" search on floridaearlysteps.com; contact details for local offices change, so confirm there. See Early Steps local offices by county.
How Hope Center works alongside Early Steps
Hope Center for Behavior Change provides early intervention ABA for young children at home, at daycare or at our centers, with weekly parent training. We do not run Early Steps, but we are glad to coordinate with your Early Steps team so goals line up. We have no waitlist and offer a free benefits check. Learn more about early intervention ABA and why early intervention matters, or contact us at 561-337-8865.