JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The number of people receiving autism services covered by insurance has risen significantly under a still relatively new Missouri law.
The state insurance department says insurers paid for 3,070 people to receive autism services last year, an increase of 22 percent from 2012. The claims totaled $8.2 million, up nearly 27 percent from the prior year.
A 2010 Missouri law requires health insurance companies to cover specific autism therapies, including what's known as "applied behavioral analysis."