Take a breath. You are not behind.

A teacher’s or caregiver’s hunch is information, not a verdict — ask what they’re seeing, then open both doors at once. The school-district evaluation decides eligibility for school services: free, any suspected disability (ADHD included), and districts must seek out and evaluate resident children from age 3 even before they enroll Ed Code §56301 — the written request two steps down starts it. The clinical evaluation produces the medical diagnosis insurance requires. Different criteria, decided by different teams — and neither substitutes for the other. Under 3? Early Start is your first call — the Regional Center step below covers it.

Start with your pediatrician and ask for a referral for a diagnostic evaluation — depending on the concern, typically a developmental-behavioral pediatrician, child neurologist, or child psychologist, though your pediatrician may be able to make the diagnosis themselves — the American Academy of Pediatrics says the diagnosis is “well within the scope of practice” of a primary care pediatrician, precisely because specialist waitlists run long. The waitlist is the bottleneck, so take the earliest slot anywhere reasonable — the written report is what the insurance step below runs on.

The evaluation is free, regardless of your income — that’s the Lanterman Act WIC §4500. If your child is under 3, Early Start must complete the evaluation and initial family service plan within 45 days of the referral 17 CCR §52086; at 3 and older, intake starts within 15 working days WIC §4642 and any needed assessment is due within 120 days of intake WIC §4643. This one call opens the path to respite and Medi-Cal. One honest fit note: Regional Centers serve autism, intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and closely related conditions — ADHD alone usually doesn’t qualify, and that’s fine: the school and insurance doors below are open to every diagnosis. Not sure which of the 21 centers is yours? Find your Regional Center →

The moment your district receives a written request, a 15-calendar-day clock starts for them to respond with an assessment plan CA Ed Code §56321. A phone call starts nothing; a letter starts everything — and this works for any suspected disability, ADHD included. Use our ready-to-send version: IEP evaluation request letter →

Waypoint doesn’t push any particular therapy — your child’s doctor or evaluating clinician is the right source for what to pursue. Your job is the coverage side: call your insurer and ask what services and therapies your plan covers for your child’s diagnosis, and what needs pre-authorization. Useful backstop: for autism, California’s SB 946 requires most fully-insured plans to cover prescribed behavioral health treatment (self-funded ERISA plans are exempt — ask which kind yours is), and every plan owes you a straight answer for any diagnosis. Whatever they say no to, get in writing: written denials can be appealed, all the way to an Independent Medical Review.

Every evaluation, letter, Notice of Action, and denial in one place, in date order. Systems respond to paper — the family with the organized record is the family that gets the faster yes, and the stronger appeal when the answer is no.

A child with a developmental disability living at home can qualify for Medi-Cal with parental income ignored, via an HCBS waiver. Medi-Cal is the door to IHSS and more — your Regional Center service coordinator can help you start the application. (This runs through Regional Center eligibility, so it applies to the same diagnoses as that door.)

Every California county is served by a Family Resource Center (47 of them cover all 58 counties) and by a federally funded Parent Training and Information Center — both staffed largely by parents who’ve walked this road, free, in multiple languages. Ask for a parent group for your child’s diagnosis; diagnosis-specific communities (local autism groups, CHADD for ADHD) are where the practical knowledge lives. One conversation with a parent six months ahead of you is worth a week of searching.

Brief one relative or friend properly — what the diagnosis means, what help looks like — so you have one person who gets it. Put your first respite request to the Regional Center in writing while you’re at it. And check on yourself the way you’d check on a friend: caregiver burnout is a predictable load, not a personal failing, and getting support early is how you stay in this for the long haul.

For children with higher support needs — constant supervision, elopement, self-injury, significant medical needs — three moves matter early: describe your hardest days honestly in every evaluation (services follow documented need, not best days); ask about IHSS protective supervision once Medi-Cal is in place — it can pay a parent for supervision hours (the guide →); and start a simple safety log of incidents — it becomes the evidence for every hours assessment later. For milder presentations, skip this step without guilt — the school and insurance tracks may be your whole first 100 days, and that’s a complete plan.

The Individual Program Plan WIC §4646 is where Regional Center services actually get written down. Bring your goals in writing and ask for each one by name. If something is refused, request a written Notice of Action — that document is what carries your appeal rights.

Read the evaluation before the meeting, not at the table. List what you want as measurable goals, ask how progress will be reported, and remember: you can take the IEP home to read before signing. You never have to decide in the room.

Look back over days 0–100: what’s working, what’s stalled, and which clock needs a written nudge. Then rest. The systems will still be there tomorrow — and now you know how to move them.