Sandy Springs incorporated in 2005, the first city to break off from unincorporated Fulton County in the modern era, and its stretch of Roswell Road and the Perimeter office district today hold more staffed private autism-therapy offices than most of the rest of north Fulton combined — the two below are ones this research could confirm with a real, working address.

Everything the city itself doesn't run — early intervention, special education, Medicaid waivers — flows through the same Fulton County and State of Georgia systems used across this guide, and every phone number and link here traces back to the agency's own page rather than a secondhand directory.

Statewide programs, numbers, and rights are on the Georgia page. This page adds the local entry points that are specific to Atlanta metro (north Fulton County).

Early intervention under 3: Babies Can't Wait (Georgia's early intervention program)

For a Sandy Springs child under 3, the path into Babies Can't Wait — Georgia's free early-intervention program — starts with a call to Fulton County Board of Health's Children 1st line, (770) 520-7500, the same countywide number used across Fulton. Nobody needs a doctor's sign-off to make that call; a parent, a preschool teacher, or a concerned relative can trigger the referral, and the eligibility evaluation itself carries no charge regardless of who requests it. Once services begin, cost is handled through a sliding scale layered on top of insurance and Medicaid, and Georgia's family guidance is explicit that inability to pay will never be the reason a qualifying child loses access to services. The Board of Health also operates a children's-health site at the Oak Hill Child, Adolescent & Family Center in Atlanta, (770) 520-7276, for families who prefer an in-person visit over the phone.

• Babies Can't Wait (Georgia's early intervention program)
• Referral phone: 1-888-651-8224 (state Babies Can't Wait office)

New to early intervention? Read the plain-language guide first.

School districts and special education

Fulton County Schools has always been Sandy Springs' school district — the city has never run its own — and its Services for Exceptional Children office, (470) 254-0400, is the entry point for Child Find, the free process that identifies and evaluates children from birth through 21, including those who are homeschooled or in private school. Written consent from a parent is what sets the district's clock: testing must be finished within 60 calendar days of that signature. A second option exists for families who'd rather not use a brick-and-mortar campus — Georgia Cyber Academy, a statewide virtual charter school that is legally its own district and runs a parallel Child Find process through grade-level Student Support Team coordinators. Under either system, a school eligibility team's ruling on Georgia's autism criteria is made independently of any doctor's diagnosis.

• Fulton County Schools — Services for Exceptional Children office, 470-254-0400; private-school and homeschool evaluation requests go to Privateschoolevaluation@fultonschools.org
• Georgia Cyber Academy — an alternative to a brick-and-mortar Fulton campus; legally its own LEA, with a Special Education Director's office reachable at (404) 334-4790 ext. 12631

IEP or 504 · If you disagree with the school

Evaluation and diagnosis pathways in Sandy Springs

These are hospital and university programs with public intake information. Listing here is informational — it is not a recommendation, and it is not medical advice. Public school evaluation is free and does not require any of these.

• Butterfly Effects — Sandy Springs Center — a center-based ABA program at 8399 Dunwoody Place, Building 6, with a full-day track for children 2-6 built around school readiness plus an after-school track for children 5 and up focused on independence and social skills; the center describes one-to-one learning pods, sensory space, and a dedicated language-enrichment area. · (888) 880-9244
• BlueSprig Autism — Sandy Springs — ABA services for ages 0-18 delivered center-based, at home, in the community, or at school, including an early-intervention track branded Sprouts/Sprigs for the youngest children; the center is at 4920 Roswell Road, Suite 1 (zip 30342, a Sandy Springs-area code — the listed mailing city is Atlanta, but the location markets itself as BlueSprig's Sandy Springs center). · (470) 258-4050
• Marcus Autism Center (Children's Healthcare of Atlanta) — the region's main referral-based diagnostic center, roughly 20 minutes south on GA-400; a licensed provider's referral is required for all but the feeding program, and evaluations run as a single intensive day for children 2 and under or two visits for children 3 and older. · 404-785-9400 · no published wait figure; Marcus maintains a resource page specifically for families waiting on services.
• Emory Autism Center — diagnostic evaluation in Decatur for patients from about age 1 through adulthood (17 and under currently accepted); intake starts with an online form, then a coordinator call. · 404-727-8350 · intake materials describe a wait-list step; no published wait time.

How assessment works · What to do while you wait

Disability services and waivers: Georgia DBHDD, Region 3 Field Office in Decatur

Georgia's two developmental-disability Medicaid waivers, NOW and COMP, are administered by DBHDD and cover long-term services that Babies Can't Wait and school special education don't reach — respite care, day services, and supported employment into adulthood. Fulton County families, Sandy Springs included, apply through DBHDD's Region 3 Field Office in Decatur, ideally via the online Individual IDD Connects portal rather than a paper form, which the agency says processes faster. After a completeness review and a psychologist's pre-eligibility determination, applicants land on the statewide I/DD Planning List, where DBHDD prioritizes by assessed need rather than application date.

• Georgia DBHDD, Region 3 Field Office in Decatur
• Phone: (404) 244-5050 (Region 3, Decatur) · 678-248-7449 (Katie Beckett centralized team)

Local organizations that help Sandy Springs families

• Parent to Parent of Georgia — Georgia's federally designated Parent Training and Information Center; free one-on-one parent matching and support groups statewide, birth through 26 (800-229-2038)
• Autism Society of Georgia — information and referral specialists, statewide support groups, and workshops across the lifespan (844-404-2742)
• Special Olympics Georgia — North Fulton United (Area 4) — the north Fulton community delegation under Special Olympics Georgia's Area 4; Fulton County Schools also fields its own Area 4 Unified Sports program (Area 4 contact: liz.smith@specialolympicsga.org, 770-414-9390)
• Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities — the state DD council; publishes the clearest public reporting on the NOW/COMP waiver planning list
• United Way of Greater Atlanta 2-1-1 — dial 211, or search the database online, 24/7, for local health and human-service referrals

Documented waits and access notes

Wait times change. Each note below links to the public source it came from — confirm current status directly with the program.

• Ava's Law requires Georgia's state-regulated insurance plans to cover autism care, but it caps ABA coverage at $35,000 per year and has no reach into self-funded employer plans, so two Sandy Springs families with different employers can end up with very different benefits. (source)
• Independent state-budget analysis has repeatedly found Georgia's NOW/COMP planning list running past 7,000 people statewide, with no sign of clearing — the reason waiver guidance in this state says to apply the moment a need looks likely, not once it's confirmed. (source)
• Sandy Springs' ADA policy lets any resident request accommodations — sign language interpreters, alternate formats, program modifications — for a city program or event by emailing ADATransition@sandyspringsga.gov at least 48 hours ahead. (source)
• Fulton County Schools' Services for Exceptional Children office has 30 more calendar days after finding a child eligible to actually convene the IEP meeting. (source)
• Sandy Springs families calling Fulton's Children 1st line for Babies Can't Wait are covered by the same federal 45-day rule as every Part C program: the IFSP meeting must happen within 45 days of that call. (source)
• Ava's Law's protection for a Georgia-regulated plan runs out at age 21 — separate from, and in addition to, its $35,000 annual ABA cap. (source)