Yagnesh Vadgama, MA, BCBA, is an established leader in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and managed care. As Vice President of Payor Strategy and Network Development at CentralReach, he helps health plans and providers move toward data-driven, outcomes-based ABA care.
Yagnesh has more than 22 years of experience in ABA. He began his career working directly with individuals on the autism spectrum and went on to direct programs in homes, schools, and community-based settings, ultimately earning his BCBA. After 11 years as a practicing clinician, he moved into managed care.
Yagnesh joined Magellan Health in 2016 and spent a decade there, most recently as president and chief operating officer of its California companies, where he served as the liaison between operational, network, and clinical leaders and the California Board of Directors. Also, as vice president of Autism, he led Magellan’s national autism and ABA product, known publicly as Autism Connections, and built the ABA department from 7 employees to 50 through new contract wins, benefit expansions, and first-time ABA launches with health plans. He also took part in workgroups such as ICHOM, spoke at conferences and universities, and developed outcomes measures for ABA.
At CentralReach, Yagnesh brings that payor-side experience to the health plans he partners with. He works to expand payor partnerships and align payors, providers, and families around standardized assessments, aggregate data analysis, and empirically supported dosing recommendations, while preserving individualized clinical decision-making. His work focuses on reducing administrative burden, such as prior authorization, and laying the groundwork for value-based arrangements, supported by CentralReach’s data platform and AI-enabled assessment tools.
Authorization delays, denials, and disconnected workflows continue to create friction between ABA providers and payors. But what will it take to move forward? This session examines where today's system falls short, what needs to change, and how providers and payors can move beyond longstanding challenges toward a more efficient, collaborative, and sustainable future for autism care.
