When private equity came for the clinic where I worked
- Private equity firms gobbled up 85% of autism-service acquisitions between 2017 and 2022.
- Investors target states with generous insurance mandates to maximize billable hours.
- Clinicians report being pushed to prioritize high-volume, controversial therapies over patient-centered care.
- Corporate ownership models prioritize profit margins over the lived experience of autistic adults.
- Parents are being forced to navigate complex corporate finance to determine if their child's care plan is actually for them.
Brief Summary
The corporatization of pediatric therapy is turning vulnerable children into profit engines for private equity firms. As these firms consolidate local clinics, clinical decisions are increasingly influenced by the drive for billable hours rather than patient outcomes. Therapists are reporting a shift toward high-intensity, controversial treatment models like Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) simply because they offer the highest return on investment, often overriding the professional judgment of the medical staff who actually work with the patients.
Why This Matters
When private equity moves into your healthcare provider's office, the primary mission shifts from wellness to wealth. You need to start treating your child's therapy clinic with the same skepticism you would a used car lot. Because these entities are incentivized to push the most expensive, time-intensive treatments—regardless of whether they are the best fit for your child—you must demand transparency. Ask who owns the practice, why a specific therapy is being recommended, and whether the provider is under pressure to meet billing quotas. Your child's care plan should be dictated by their needs, not by a quarterly earnings report.