The short version
- Your Aurora address decides who to call. Arapahoe and Douglas county families go to Developmental Pathways. Adams County families go to Rocky Mountain Human Services.
- Two public programs can pay for respite: the state-funded Family Support Services Program (FSSP) and the Children's Extensive Support (CES) Medicaid waiver. Developmental Pathways lists not being active in a Medicaid waiver as an FSSP requirement, so ask which fits before you apply.
- FSSP money goes through a Most In Need (MIN) assessment, and Developmental Pathways says enrollment is prioritized by that score. The county pages we read did not publish dollar limits.
- The Colorado Respite Coalition keeps a searchable provider list with a Medicaid and waiver filter. It does not endorse any listing.
- Medicaid ABA cannot double as respite. The state's behavioral therapy criteria exclude services that are primarily respite or daycare.
Respite care for autism in Aurora starts with one question: which county is your address in? Aurora reaches into Arapahoe, Adams and Douglas counties, and a different agency handles the paperwork in each. Once you know who to call, there are two public programs that can pay a respite provider, plus a statewide directory for finding one.
Information current as of October 2026. Programs and funding change, so confirm details when you call.
Which agency do I call?
Aurora covers more than 165 square miles and spans three counties, per the City of Aurora. The state’s agency directory (page updated July 1, 2025) sorts them like this:
- Arapahoe and Douglas counties: Developmental Pathways, 14280 E. Jewell Avenue, Suite A, Aurora. It is both the case management agency (CMA) and the community centered board (CCB). Phone 303-360-6600.
- Adams County: Rocky Mountain Human Services is the CMA, at 303-636-5600. North Metro Community Services is the CCB.
A CMA handles Medicaid waivers. A CCB handles state-funded supports and local funding for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Developmental Pathways does both for its counties.
What is the Family Support Services Program?
FSSP is a state-funded program for families caring for a child with a developmental disability or delay at home. It is not a Medicaid benefit. It can pay for respite and for other costs families carry that other families do not.
In Arapahoe and Douglas counties, Developmental Pathways runs it. Its page says FSSP can pay a provider the family chooses to care for the child. The same program also covers therapies, equipment, transportation to specialty appointments, adaptive recreation, home safety changes and parent and sibling support. The listed requirements are living in Arapahoe, Douglas or Elbert County, having a family member at home with a developmental disability or delay, and not being active in a Medicaid waiver. (Developmental Pathways)
In Adams County, Rocky Mountain Human Services runs it for children ages 3 to 18. For ages 3 to 5 you need proof of a delay, such as early intervention eligibility before age 3, current school-district special education eligibility, or a medical diagnosis known to cause a delay. Over age 5 you need a formal developmental disability determination. New families submit a referral through the online portal. Its contact center is 844-790-7647. (Rocky Mountain Human Services)
How does FSSP decide who gets money?
Developmental Pathways prioritizes enrollment by a Most In Need (MIN) score. You complete the MIN assessment, update it every year, and update it while on the waitlist too. If you skip the update, the page says the family “will no longer be eligible for FSSP supports.” To start, send the intake referral form or call 303-360-6600, ext. 3. (Developmental Pathways)
Its waitlist page says Family Support Services can have a local waitlist, and that you can be enrolled in one program while waiting for another. (Developmental Pathways)
The two county pages we read list no dollar limit. Ask the intake team for the current amount and whether respite hours are paid directly to the provider or reimbursed to you.
What does the CES waiver add?
The Children’s Extensive Support (CES) waiver is the Medicaid route. Respite is one of its listed benefits, next to community connector support, assistive technology, home accessibility changes and caregiver education. (HCPF)
To qualify, a child must:
- be under 18 and live in the family home;
- have a developmental disability (a developmental delay counts under age 5);
- need hands-on help for a behavior or medical condition at least once every two hours during the day and about once every three hours overnight, beyond what is typical for the child’s age;
- meet the Social Security definition of disability, the ICF/IID level of care and the Medicaid financial test.
Developmental Pathways describes the same threshold as needing “almost constant line-of-sight supervision.” It also states there is no state waitlist for CES. (Developmental Pathways) You apply through your CMA. HCPF also says it is working on respite policy updates across its children’s and adult waivers, so ask your case manager what has changed. (HCPF respite page)
Can ABA hours count as respite?
No, and the reverse is true too. Health First Colorado’s behavioral therapy criteria exclude services that are primarily respite or daycare in nature, and they list respite care among settings the benefit does not cover. (HCPF criteria) Treat the two as separate budgets. ABA pays for treatment. Respite pays for a break.
Where do I find a respite provider?
- Colorado Respite Coalition. It is a program of Easterseals Colorado. Its Resource Finder filters by county, in-home or center-based care, ages served, “Challenging Behaviors,” and funding accepted, including Medicaid and waivers. It states that it does not endorse or recommend any listing, so you do the vetting. (Colorado Respite Coalition)
- Angels of Colorado. It runs a respite center at 1276 S. Chambers Rd. in Aurora, for children and adults with physical and cognitive disabilities. Its site does not list costs or accepted funding, so call 720-747-8228 and ask. (Angels of Colorado)
- Developmental Pathways. Its respite page points to a year-round list of respite and camp options and gives no eligibility details, so ask the intake team. (Developmental Pathways)
What should a sitter know on day one?
A one-page handoff sheet saves the first visit. Put on it:
- How your child communicates a need, with the exact words, signs or device buttons.
- The two or three things that usually go wrong and what you do first.
- Food, allergy and bathroom routines.
- Whether your child runs off, and which doors to watch. Our wandering safety guide has a checklist.
- Two phone numbers that answer.
If your child has a behavior plan, a BCBA can condense it for a sitter. Our parent training sessions cover handoffs like this, and in-home and community-based ABA can help your child practice with new adults. We take all major insurance including Medicaid, have no waitlist and start families within two weeks of approval. Contact us.
Sources
- City of Aurora, About Aurora (the city reaches into Arapahoe, Adams and Douglas counties)
- Colorado HCPF, CMA and CCB Agency Directory
- Developmental Pathways, Family Support Services Program
- Developmental Pathways, Get Started
- Developmental Pathways, Waitlist Information
- Developmental Pathways, Children's Extensive Support Medicaid Waiver
- Developmental Pathways, Respite Initiative
- Rocky Mountain Human Services, Family Support Services Program
- Colorado HCPF, Children's Extensive Support Waiver (CES)
- Colorado HCPF, Respite
- Colorado HCPF, Health First Colorado Criteria for Behavioral Therapies (November 2024)
- Colorado Respite Coalition
- Colorado Respite Coalition, Resource Finder
- Angels of Colorado