Do I bill DDS directly for Early Start services?

No. You bill the regional center that vendored you and issued the authorization, through the state eBilling system. DDS funds and oversees the regional centers but does not process routine provider invoices.

Can I serve a child before the authorization arrives?

You can, but it is at your own risk. Services delivered without a POS authorization in place are generally not reimbursable, even if the child is eligible and the IFSP names the service. Confirm the authorization dates and units first.

How long does vendorization take?

It varies by regional center, commonly a few weeks to a few months. Some regional centers also require you to be vendored for each specific service code you plan to bill. Start the application before you have referrals waiting.

What is the Early Start rate for my service?

Most Early Start services are paid at the statewide median rate set by DDS for your service code, rather than a negotiated rate. Your vendor letter states your rate; your regional center's provider services department can confirm it.

Does casedaisy submit claims for me?

No. casedaisy tracks authorizations, logs visits, and generates the file you upload to eBilling. You remain the billing provider and submit through your regional center's eBilling portal.

Guide · California Early Start

California Early Start for EI providers: how vendorization, authorizations, and billing actually work

California's early intervention system (Early Start) pays you through a chain: the Department of Developmental Services (DDS) funds 21 nonprofit regional centers, each regional center contracts with local providers through a process called vendorization, a service coordinator issues a Purchase of Service (POS) authorization before you can serve a child, and you invoice electronically against that authorization. Once you can name each link, the paperwork stops feeling arbitrary.

Last reviewed: September 2026. Written to explain, not to sell — sources are the Department of Developmental Services and the regional centers themselves.

The chain, top to bottom

DDS is the state department responsible for services to Californians with developmental disabilities, including Early Start, the Part C early intervention program for children from birth to 36 months. DDS does not deliver therapy and usually does not pay you directly. It funds regional centers and writes the rules they operate under.

Regional centers are the 21 nonprofit corporations under contract with DDS, each covering a geographic area. Your regional center is your real counterparty: it decides which children are eligible, writes IFSPs with families, authorizes services, and pays providers.

You, the provider, sit at the end of the chain. Nothing you do is billable until three things are true: you are vendored, the child has an IFSP naming your service, and a POS authorization exists covering your visits.

Vendorization: your license to bill

Vendorization is the approval process by which a regional center contracts with you to provide a specific service at a set rate. Each service has a service code (for example, 116 for early intervention services) and you are vendored per service code, sometimes per regional center. Being vendored with one regional center does not automatically vendor you with another.

The process typically involves an application, proof of professional license or credentials, liability insurance, and rate setting — often the state-set median rate for your service code. Timelines vary widely by regional center, from a few weeks to several months. Apply before you need it.

You are vendored per regional center and per service code.
Rates for many Early Start services are set at the statewide median rate, not negotiated.
Keep your vendor letter — it lists your vendor number and service codes, which appear on every authorization and invoice.

POS authorizations: the unit of permission

A Purchase of Service authorization is the regional center's written commitment to pay for a defined service: a specific child, service code, number of units, unit type (hours, visits, or sessions), start and end dates, and your vendor number. If it isn't on the authorization, it isn't paid.

Authorizations come from the child's service coordinator and follow the IFSP. They expire — typically aligned to the IFSP period — and renewals are not automatic. The single most common billing failure in Early Start is delivering visits after an authorization lapses or beyond its unit cap.

Check the end date and remaining units before every visit, not once a month.
Units are usually stated per week or per month; exceeding the authorized frequency is not billable even if the family asked.
Track pacing: if a child is authorized for 4 visits a month and you've delivered 1 by the 20th, the unused units expire.

Getting paid: eBilling

DDS requires providers to bill electronically, with limited exceptions such as parent-vouchered services. In practice each regional center runs the same state eBilling system behind its own login: you submit invoices against your authorizations, either by typing visits in manually or by uploading a file, and the system validates each line against the authorization on file.

Submissions are processed in batch, typically overnight, so a rejected line surfaces the next day rather than at entry. Rejections are almost always mechanical: wrong dates, units over the authorization, a lapsed authorization, or a mismatched service code.

Where Casedaisy fits

casedaisy is not a billing company and doesn't replace eBilling. It keeps the operational layer clean so billing is boring: authorization end dates and unit caps tracked per client with pacing warnings, visits logged against the right authorization, and a DDS-format export that produces the file eBilling accepts — so you're not retyping visits at the end of the month.

Authorizations and billing, without the spreadsheet

casedaisy tracks authorization dates and units per client, plans your driving route, and exports the DDS eBilling file at month end. Built with working EI therapists.

Start free casedaisy for Early Intervention

Frequently asked questions

Do I bill DDS directly for Early Start services?: No. You bill the regional center that vendored you and issued the authorization, through the state eBilling system. DDS funds and oversees the regional centers but does not process routine provider invoices.
Can I serve a child before the authorization arrives?: You can, but it is at your own risk. Services delivered without a POS authorization in place are generally not reimbursable, even if the child is eligible and the IFSP names the service. Confirm the authorization dates and units first.
How long does vendorization take?: It varies by regional center, commonly a few weeks to a few months. Some regional centers also require you to be vendored for each specific service code you plan to bill. Start the application before you have referrals waiting.
What is the Early Start rate for my service?: Most Early Start services are paid at the statewide median rate set by DDS for your service code, rather than a negotiated rate. Your vendor letter states your rate; your regional center's provider services department can confirm it.
Does casedaisy submit claims for me?: No. casedaisy tracks authorizations, logs visits, and generates the file you upload to eBilling. You remain the billing provider and submit through your regional center's eBilling portal.