Some families come to Hope Center for ABA and find that a parent, a couple or the whole family could use another kind of support too: help with worry, low mood, big changes or hard experiences. Hope Center offers mental health therapy as well as ABA. This page explains what mental health therapy is, how it differs from ABA, how the two can fit together, and the questions to ask us so you know whether our therapy service fits your family.
Does Hope Center offer mental health therapy?
Yes. Our current services are ABA and mental health therapy. ABA is available at our centers, at home, at school, at daycare and in the community, and we offer parent training and assessments alongside it.
Therapy is provided by our clinical director, Aisha Albright-Jourdan, LCSW, and by Frances Maxwell-Baxter, EdD, LMHC. Individual therapy is for adults, and we also offer couples and family therapy. We do not offer individual therapy for children. Sessions can be in person or by video. Tell us who the therapy is for, what is going on, and your insurance, and we will tell you plainly whether we are a fit and what the next step is.
How is mental health therapy different from ABA?
ABA and mental health therapy can both help, but they are built for different jobs.
| ABA | Mental health therapy | |
|---|---|---|
| Main focus | Building skills (communication, daily living, coping, social skills) and reducing behavior that is unsafe or gets in the way, through teaching and reinforcement | Feelings, thoughts and relationships: for example anxiety, low mood, stress, grief or the effects of hard experiences |
| Who plans it | A Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) designs the plan; at Hope Center, Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs) deliver sessions with weekly BCBA supervision | A licensed mental health professional, such as a clinical social worker, mental health counselor, marriage and family therapist or psychologist |
| How often | Often several sessions a week, set by the treatment plan and the insurer's authorization | Varies with the person and the plan |
| Parents' role | Weekly parent training at Hope Center | Depends on the person's age and the type of therapy |
| Diagnosis for insurance | Insurance-funded ABA usually requires an autism or Down syndrome diagnosis | Depends on the plan's behavioral health benefits |
For a deeper look at when a child benefits from both, read when your child needs both ABA and mental health therapy.
Why get both from one team?
When a child has ABA with one provider and therapy with another, the two teams may set different goals or use different words for the same strategy. Coordination is easier when providers can talk to each other and agree on what to work on. Having both services under one organization can make that simpler, with your written consent for information to be shared.
Our ABA is trauma-informed and assent-based. Our clinical director, Aisha Albright-Jourdan, MSW, LCSW, BCBA, trained in neurobiology and trauma-informed care, and every ABA plan is reviewed by her before it goes to insurance. Ask us how your child's ABA and family therapy would be coordinated, and who would be on the team.
What should I ask before starting therapy?
- Who would provide the therapy, and what is their license?
- Is the service a fit for my child's age and the concern I have? Do you work with parents, teens or younger children?
- Where do sessions happen, and how often?
- How will therapy and ABA be coordinated if my child has both?
- Does my insurance cover it, and what will I pay? Is the sliding scale available?
- What happens if my child is in crisis between sessions?
You can check any Florida clinical social worker, mental health counselor, marriage and family therapist or psychologist on the Florida Department of Health's license verification portal. BCBAs are checked separately on the BACB certificant registry, because Florida does not issue its own behavior analyst license.
What Florida rules protect children in therapy?
- Written parental consent. Florida's Parents' Bill of Rights says a health care practitioner, or someone they employ, may not provide health care services to a minor without first getting written parental consent, except as otherwise provided by law (Fla. Stat. 1014.06). A licensed clinical social worker or mental health counselor is a health care practitioner under Florida law.
- Your access to records. Parents have the right to access and review their minor child's medical records, with narrow exceptions (Fla. Stat. 1014.04). For psychotherapy records, Florida lets psychologists and ch. 491 therapists provide a report instead of copies (Fla. Stat. 456.057).
- Privacy. At Hope Center, families receive a privacy statement in the intake package.
If parents share responsibility under a parenting plan, bring a copy of it to intake.
What if my child is in crisis?
Therapy is not an emergency service. If anyone is in immediate danger, call 911. You can also call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, any time. Florida added 988 to its crisis services law in 2025.
It helps to know that under Florida's Baker Act, "mental illness" does not include a developmental disability, so autism by itself is not a reason for an involuntary examination (Fla. Stat. 394.455). If your child is autistic and has a mental health crisis, tell responders about your child's diagnosis and how they communicate. Our home safety plan guide can help you plan ahead.
How do I pay for therapy?
We work with Blue Cross Blue Shield (Florida Blue), Aetna, Cigna (Evernorth), UMR, Personify Health and TRICARE East (Humana Military). We are also in network with Optum for mental health therapy (for ABA, call us for the current Optum status). Mental health therapy is often covered under a plan's behavioral health benefits, which can differ from its ABA benefits, so ask us to check. Self-pay is available for all of our services: mental health therapy is $175 an hour and family or couples therapy is $225 an hour (rates effective January 1, 2026, billed in 15-minute units). Our sliding scale, based on household income and family size, can lower your share after insurance or your self-pay costs. The benefits check is free. See insurance at Hope Center and our sliding scale.
Ready to ask about therapy?
Call 561-337-8865, email office@hopecenteraba.com or request a free consultation. Tell us who the therapy is for and what you are hoping to change. You can also see all of our services.