Speech therapy coverage, "developmental delay"

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a1
Emu Egg
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21 Apr 2014, 4:15 pm

Hello,

I have suffered from stuttering and speech impairments for a long time, and have had Asperger's Syndrome since childhood. I would like to seek treatment for my speech impairment as it is incapacitating in daily life. My insurance, which is through my employer, only covers speech therapy when it is prescribed for a "developmental delay". Specifically, the referral for an initial speech evaluation must have a code indicating "developmental delay".

Does Asperger's Syndrome count as a "developmental delay" for this purpose?

In addition, the insurance company couldn't/wouldn't tell me what the "code" for a developmental delay is. Does anyone know what that code is? Is it something out of the DSM, or some standard with insurance companies?

Thanks for folks' advice.



Meistersinger
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21 Apr 2014, 8:42 pm

Insurance companies will normally accept the code listed in the DSM, however, since thr publication of the DSM 5, Asperger's no longer exists. However, there might be some insurance companies that may not even recognize the DSM, and instead use the International classification of Diseases (ICD).

Either way, you will need to be diagnosed by a mental health professional in order to get the insurance companies to "pony up" the funds for services.