Dallas County is large enough that its autism-related public systems concentrate in a few well-established organizations: Metrocare Services runs both early intervention and the county's long-term disability-waiver intake, a children's hospital system offers a dedicated diagnostic pathway, and dozens of independent school districts each carry their own Child Find duty depending on your street address.

This page lists the specific phone numbers, referral rules, and web addresses those organizations publish, so a Dallas-area family can start more than one process at once instead of guessing which door to knock on first.

Statewide programs, numbers, and rights are on the Texas page. This page adds the local entry points that are specific to Dallas metro (Dallas County).

Early intervention under 3: Texas Early Childhood Intervention (ECI)

Any child under 36 months old in Texas can be referred to Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) by literally anyone — a doctor, a parent, a childcare worker — and a delay diagnosis is not a prerequisite to ask for the evaluation. In Dallas County, Metrocare Services holds the ECI contract; families can call 214-331-0109, email ECIreferral@metrocareservices.org, or fax 214-333-7097, and the referral form asks for the child's name, birth date, address, caregiver details, and a description of the concern. One timing rule is worth knowing: if a referral lands within 45 days of the child's third birthday, Metrocare forwards it directly to the local school district instead of opening an ECI case. Cost is not a barrier for the ECI evaluation itself — it is always free — and later therapy sessions run on an income-based sliding scale.

• Texas Early Childhood Intervention (ECI)
• Referral phone: 214-331-0109 (Metrocare ECI referral)

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

School districts and special education

Under IDEA's Child Find requirement, Texas districts and charter schools are legally bound to locate and evaluate every student they suspect may have a disability, covering ages birth to 21, and families are never billed for it. A written evaluation request to the campus or special education department starts the clock. Dallas County contains dozens of independent school districts, so which one runs your child's Child Find process depends entirely on your home address.

• Dallas ISD — Child Find Intake 972-581-4210; Child Find Lead Sherry Bagby-Glover, sbagby@dallasisd.org, 972-581-4523
• Garland ISD — Special Education Department 972-494-8201; also runs a dedicated Section 504 program
• Mesquite ISD — Child Find intake 972-882-8702; online intake form available in English and Spanish

IEP or 504 · If you disagree with the school

Evaluation and diagnosis pathways in Dallas

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.

• Children's Health — Neurodevelopmental Neurology (autism diagnostic evaluations) — diagnostic evaluation for autism spectrum disorder using standardized tools including the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS); the pathway begins with a pediatrician's or teacher's concern leading to a referral to the specialty team · 214-456-7700

How assessment works · What to do while you wait

Disability services and waivers: Metrocare Services — Dallas County's Local IDD Authority (LIDDA)

Texas designates one local authority per county to manage long-term intellectual and developmental disability services, and Metrocare Services is Dallas County's — a status the organization states directly on its own site. Metrocare enrolls families onto the HCS (Home and Community-based Services) and Texas Home Living Medicaid waiver interest lists at 214-333-7000, IDDReferrals@metrocareservices.org, or toll-free at 877-283-2121. The CLASS, DBMD, and MDCP interest lists work differently and are joined instead through the state's own line, 877-438-5658.

• Metrocare Services — Dallas County's Local IDD Authority (LIDDA)
• Phone: 214-333-7000 (IDD intake) · 877-438-5658 (state interest list line)

Local organizations that help Dallas families

• United Way of Metropolitan Dallas — North Texas United Way affiliate; a starting point for benefits navigation and referrals if you dial 2-1-1
• Autism Society of Texas — statewide information and referral line, 512-479-4199; Spanish support available
• SPEDTex — the state's special education parent helpline: 1-855-773-3839, weekdays, with email and live chat
• Disability Rights Texas — the state's federally designated protection-and-advocacy agency; direct legal help when rights are violated
• Navigate Life Texas — state-supported plain-language resource site for Texas families of children with disabilities

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.

• Metrocare's own IDD services page describes waitlists for ICF/IID, HCS, and Texas Home Living slots running 10 to 15-plus years — a figure the organization publishes itself, separate from any statewide estimate. (source)
• Once a Dallas County family signs consent, state law gives the district 45 school days to complete the full individual evaluation, extending that window for every stretch of three or more consecutive absences. (source)
• Dallas County districts must then seat the Admission, Review, and Dismissal committee — Texas's name for the IEP team — within 30 calendar days of the completed evaluation report to decide eligibility and placement. (source)
• Metrocare-area families with a state-regulated commercial plan get an ABA benefit capped at $36,000 a year once their child turns 10, with no such ceiling for a younger child. (source)