Lubbock is the seat of Lubbock County and the hub of the South Plains region, and its long-term disability system runs through StarCare Specialty Health System, a unit of local government that also handles mental-health crisis response and substance-use services for the county.

For school-age children, Lubbock ISD is the area's largest district, but fast-growing Frenship ISD and Lubbock-Cooper ISD also cover parts of the metro, and each district runs its own Child Find process under federal law.

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

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

Birth to 36 months is the window Texas's Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) program covers, and a referral for a developmental delay can be made by any adult in the child's life — parent, physician, or caregiver — with no diagnosis needed up front. ECI is contracted out locally rather than run by a single statewide office, and we confirmed that StarCare Specialty Health System, Lubbock County's local IDD authority, does not list ECI among its own programs; the Texas Health and Human Services Commission's ECI Program Search tool is the authoritative way to look up whichever contractor currently covers a specific Lubbock address. Once referred, state rule requires the local ECI program to complete its evaluation and Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) within 45 calendar days, then begin agreed services within 28 days of the family's signature, with the evaluation itself always free.

• Texas Early Childhood Intervention (ECI)

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

School districts and special education

Child Find, a requirement under federal special-education law, obliges every Texas school district and charter to identify and evaluate students it suspects have a disability, from birth to age 21, at zero cost to the family. Submitting a written evaluation request to the campus or the district's special education office starts the process. Lubbock ISD is the area's largest district, with Frenship ISD and Lubbock-Cooper ISD covering other parts of Lubbock County, so confirm which one covers your address.

• Lubbock ISD — the district's dedicated special education information page
• Frenship ISD — Special Education department, district office (806) 866-9541
• Lubbock-Cooper ISD — the district's dedicated special education page, covering the fast-growing southwest part of the metro

IEP or 504 · If you disagree with the school

Evaluation and diagnosis pathways in Lubbock

We have not yet verified a hospital or university evaluation program with public intake information in Lubbock. That is a gap in our research, not a sign there is nothing here — and it does not stand between you and an evaluation. The school district evaluation above is free, and early intervention under 3 does not need a private diagnosis first.

How assessment works · What to do while you wait

Disability services and waivers: StarCare Specialty Health System — Lubbock County's local IDD authority

StarCare Specialty Health System is Lubbock County's local authority for intellectual and developmental disability services, offering Home and Community-based Services (HCS) and Texas Home Living (TxHmL) program enrollment. Families reach Service Information and Intake at 806-740-1421 or toll-free at 844-472-8810 to begin the eligibility and waiver-interest-list process. As elsewhere in Texas, the CLASS, DBMD, and MDCP interest lists are not handled by StarCare — those are joined instead through the state's own toll-free line, 877-438-5658.

• StarCare Specialty Health System — Lubbock County's local IDD authority
• Phone: 806-740-1421 (Service Info/Intake) · 877-438-5658 (state interest list line)

Local organizations that help Lubbock families

• StarCare Specialty Health System — Crisis Line — 806-740-1414 or toll-free 800-687-7581, for mental-health emergencies, separate from routine IDD intake
• 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.

• Lubbock ISD, Frenship ISD, and Lubbock-Cooper ISD each get 45 school days from a parent's signed consent to finish the full individual evaluation, with the timeline extended for absences of three or more school days running. (source)
• Texas law then requires an Admission, Review, and Dismissal committee meeting — the state's name for the IEP team — within 30 calendar days of the completed evaluation report. (source)
• Lubbock County families with a state-regulated commercial plan face a $36,000 annual ABA reimbursement cap once their child turns 10, but no dollar limit applies before that birthday. (source)