<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<meta name="description" content="Ryan's Law requires some South Carolina plans to cover ABA. The $50,000 cap is the 2007 base figure and rises with inflation yearly. Small group and individual plans are not covered at all.">
<title>Does Ryan's Law Cover ABA on My Private Insurance in South Carolina? The Cap Is Not $50,000, and the Law Does Not Reach Every Plan | Achieving Stars Therapy</title>
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=DM+Sans:wght@400;500;600&family=Fraunces:opsz,wght@9..144,500;9..144,600&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">
<style>:root { --white: #FFFFFF; --off-white: #F9FAFB; --gold: #F5A623; --gold-light: #FEF7E8; --navy: #1A2B4A; --navy-soft: #2D3E5F; --gray: #6B7280; --border: #E5E7EB; }
* { margin: 0; padding: 0; box-sizing: border-box; }
body { font-family: 'DM Sans', system-ui, sans-serif; background: var(--off-white); color: var(--navy); line-height: 1.7; font-size: 17px; }
h1 { font-family: 'Fraunces', Georgia, serif; font-size: clamp(28px, 6vw, 42px); font-weight: 600; line-height: 1.15; color: var(--white); margin-bottom: 16px; }
h2 { font-family: 'Fraunces', serif; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 600; color: var(--navy); margin-bottom: 16px; padding-bottom: 8px; border-bottom: 2px solid var(--gold); }
h3 { font-family: 'Fraunces', serif; font-size: 19px; font-weight: 600; color: var(--navy); margin: 24px 0 10px; }
p { margin-bottom: 14px; color: var(--navy-soft); }
a { color: var(--gold); font-weight: 500; text-decoration: underline; text-underline-offset: 2px; }
a:hover { color: var(--navy); }
ul, ol { margin: 14px 0; padding-left: 24px; }
li { margin-bottom: 8px; color: var(--navy-soft); }
strong { color: var(--navy); }
table { width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; margin: 18px 0; font-size: 15px; }
th, td { padding: 10px 12px; text-align: left; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--border); vertical-align: top; }
th { background: var(--gold-light); color: var(--navy); font-weight: 600; font-family: 'Fraunces', serif; }
tr:hover { background: var(--off-white); }
.hero { background: linear-gradient(135deg, var(--navy) 0%, var(--navy-soft) 100%); padding: 130px 24px 48px; text-align: center; }
.hero-inner { max-width: 720px; margin: 0 auto; }
.location-badge { display: inline-block; background: var(--gold); color: var(--navy); font-size: 12px; font-weight: 600; letter-spacing: 0.06em; text-transform: uppercase; padding: 6px 14px; border-radius: 20px; margin-bottom: 16px; }
.hero p { font-size: 18px; color: rgba(255,255,255,0.85); line-height: 1.7; max-width: 600px; margin: 0 auto; }
.quick-info { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(140px, 1fr)); gap: 16px; background: var(--white); border-radius: 12px; padding: 24px; margin: -32px auto 32px; max-width: 800px; box-shadow: 0 4px 20px rgba(26,43,74,0.08); position: relative; z-index: 10; }
.info-item { text-align: center; }
.info-label { font-size: 12px; color: var(--gray); text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 0.05em; margin-bottom: 4px; }
.info-value { font-size: 15px; font-weight: 600; color: var(--navy); }
.content { max-width: 800px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 24px 24px 72px; }
section { margin-bottom: 36px; }
.highlight-box { background: var(--gold-light); border-left: 4px solid var(--gold); border-radius: 0 10px 10px 0; padding: 18px 22px; margin: 20px 0; }
.highlight-box p { margin: 0; color: var(--navy); }
.faq-item { margin-bottom: 22px; }
.faq-item h3 { font-size: 17px; margin-bottom: 8px; }
.faq-item p { font-size: 16px; }
.disclaimer { font-size: 13px; color: var(--gray); font-style: italic; margin-top: 20px; padding: 12px; background: var(--off-white); border-radius: 8px; }
.cta-section { background: linear-gradient(135deg, var(--navy) 0%, var(--navy-soft) 100%); border-radius: 16px; padding: 40px 32px; text-align: center; margin-top: 36px; }
.cta-section h2 { color: var(--white); border: none; padding: 0; margin-bottom: 12px; font-size: 26px; }
.cta-section p { color: rgba(255,255,255,0.9); margin-bottom: 8px; font-size: 17px; }
.cta-section strong { color: var(--gold); }
.cta-button { display: inline-block; background: var(--gold); color: var(--navy); font-weight: 600; font-size: 16px; padding: 14px 32px; border-radius: 8px; text-decoration: none; margin-top: 20px; }
.cta-button:hover { color: var(--navy); }
.cta-grid { display: grid; grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(200px, 1fr)); gap: 16px; margin-top: 20px; }
.cta-item { background: rgba(255,255,255,0.1); border-radius: 10px; padding: 18px; min-width: 0; }
.cta-item-label { font-size: 12px; color: var(--gold); text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 0.05em; margin-bottom: 6px; }
.cta-item-value { color: var(--white); font-weight: 600; font-size: 15px; word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: anywhere; min-width: 0; }
.cta-item-value a { color: var(--white); text-decoration: none; word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: anywhere; }
.cta-item-value a:hover { color: var(--gold); }
@media (max-width: 600px) { .quick-info { margin: -24px 16px 24px; grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr); } .cta-grid { grid-template-columns: 1fr; } table { font-size: 13px; } th, td { padding: 6px 8px; } }
.hero,.ash-hero,.ash-loc-page .ash-hero{padding-top:130px !important}</style>
</head>
<body>
<div class="hero"><div class="hero-inner"><span class="location-badge">South Carolina Insurance</span><h1>Does Ryan's Law Cover ABA on Your Plan?</h1><p>Ryan's Law is South Carolina's autism insurance mandate, written into SC Code 38-71-280. It requires covered plans to pay for behavioral therapy. Two things about it are widely misreported: the dollar cap, and which plans it actually reaches.</p></div></div>
<div class="quick-info"><div class="info-item"><div class="info-label">Law</div><div class="info-value">SC Code 38-71-280</div></div><div class="info-item"><div class="info-label">Diagnosed By</div><div class="info-value">Age 8</div></div><div class="info-item"><div class="info-label">Covered To</div><div class="info-value">Age 16</div></div><div class="info-item"><div class="info-label">Cap</div><div class="info-value">Rises yearly</div></div></div>
<div class="content">
<section><p>Ryan's Law requires certain South Carolina health plans to cover treatment of autism spectrum disorder, including behavioral therapy such as applied behavior analysis. A child must be <strong>diagnosed at age 8 or younger</strong>, and coverage runs <strong>to age 16</strong>.</p>
<p>Then there are the two things nearly every page about this law gets wrong.</p></section>
<section><h2>The cap is not $50,000</h2><p>Search this and you will read that Ryan's Law caps behavioral therapy at $50,000 a year. That number is real, but it is the figure written into the law in <strong>2007</strong>. The statute says the maximum is adjusted every January 1 for inflation, using the Consumer Price Index.</p>
<p>It has been climbing for nearly two decades. South Carolina's Department of Insurance publishes the new figure each year:</p>
<table>
<tr><th>Year</th><th>Maximum benefit</th></tr>
<tr><td>2013</td><td>$52,100</td></tr>
<tr><td>2022</td><td>$62,100</td></tr>
<tr><td>2023</td><td>$67,300</td></tr>
</table>
<p>The real ceiling today is meaningfully higher than $50,000. Anyone quoting the flat figure is reading a 2007 number. Ask your insurer for the current calendar year's maximum.</p></section>
<section><h2>The law does not reach every plan</h2><p>This is the part that decides whether Ryan's Law helps you, and the usual advice ("check if your plan is self-funded") is too simple.</p>
<table>
<tr><th>Plan type</th><th>Ryan's Law applies?</th></tr>
<tr><td>State Employee Health Plan</td><td>Yes</td></tr>
<tr><td>Fully insured <strong>large group</strong></td><td>Yes</td></tr>
<tr><td>Fully insured <strong>small group</strong></td><td>No</td></tr>
<tr><td>Individual / marketplace</td><td>No</td></tr>
<tr><td>Self-funded (ERISA)</td><td>No</td></tr>
</table>
<div class="highlight-box"><p><strong>If you work for a small business or buy your own coverage, Ryan's Law does not protect you</strong>, even if your plan is fully insured. That surprises people, and it is the most useful thing on this page.</p></div>
<p>To find your bucket, ask HR whether the group plan is fully insured or self-funded, and whether it is small or large group. The insurance card will not reliably tell you.</p></section>
<section><h2>Frequently Asked Questions</h2>
<div class="faq-item"><h3>Ryan's Law doesn't cover my plan. Is that the end?</h3><p>No. Many plans cover ABA voluntarily with no mandate forcing them. And Medicaid covers ABA to age 21 under EPSDT with no dollar cap, on a separate track. Achieving Stars Therapy runs a free benefits check to find which lever you actually have.</p></div>
<div class="faq-item"><h3>What if my child was diagnosed after age 8?</h3><p>Ryan's Law will not apply. Medicaid EPSDT has no such requirement, which is why late-diagnosed kids often end up funded through Medicaid. Achieving Stars Therapy serves families in <a href="/location/city/aba-therapy-greenville-sc">Greenville</a>, <a href="/location/city/aba-therapy-spartanburg-sc">Spartanburg</a>, and across <a href="/location/states/aba-therapy-south-carolina">South Carolina</a>.</p></div>
</section>
<p class="disclaimer">Dollar figures come from South Carolina Department of Insurance bulletins for the years shown. The current-year maximum is higher; confirm this year's figure with your insurer. Not legal advice.</p>
<div class="cta-section">
<h2>Find Out What Your Plan Covers</h2>
<p>Free benefits check. BCBA-led, in-home, flexible day and evening scheduling.</p>
<a href="https://www.achievingstarstherapy.com/contact" class="cta-button">Check Your Coverage</a>
<div class="cta-grid">
<div class="cta-item"><div class="cta-item-label">Call</div><div class="cta-item-value"><a href="tel:8336663115">(833) 666-3115</a></div></div>
<div class="cta-item"><div class="cta-item-label">Email</div><div class="cta-item-value"><a href="mailto:info@achievingstarstherapy.com">info@achievingstarstherapy.com</a></div></div>
<div class="cta-item"><div class="cta-item-label">Ages</div><div class="cta-item-value">18 months to 15 years</div></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>
