A behaviorally based treatment for autism that is widely considered one of the most effective ways to help children with the condition will come within reach of thousands of California families when a new law kicks in July 1.

Until now, insurance companies have classified the treatment, which can involve several hours per day of therapy and cost thousands of dollars each month, as educational rather than medical.

The new state law, however, will require most plans to cover it.

Its very important that insurance companies fund this because its medically necessary, said Dr. Susan Schmidt-Lackner, an autism specialist who is an associate professor of clinical psychiatry at UCLA. Behavioral interventions are one of the mainstays of treatment for autism.

The treatment, called applied behavioral analysis, involves no medication and no special diets. Instead, therapists use a highly focused reward system to distill even the most complicated human interactions into a series of very simple steps that almost anyone can learn.

Monday, July 2: NBC4 Hosts Experts to Answer Your Questions About Behaviorally Based Treatment for Autism

These techniques are so effective that some children who receive the treatment are no longer considered autistic after theyve had it. Others make years of progress in a few months.

But behavioral interventions are expensive, because they require hours of one-on-one work with every child or adult who receives them. A team of behaviorists may spend 25 to 40 hours per week working with a single child.

We break down a complex skill into teachable units, said Paige Raetz, a behavior analyst and clinical director for Trumpet Behavioral Health.

An act as seemingly simple as learning to look another person in the eye, for example, may simply begin with a reward for a child who responds when a therapist calls his name. Another reward perhaps a small piece of candy might be proffered when the child comes to sit at a table where the therapist is waiting.

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Coverage for Autism Treatment Starts July 1