Cape Coral, Fla. (September 9, 2026) — Governor Ron DeSantis has appointed David Brown, LCSW, co-founder and President of Family Initiative (FI), to Florida’s newly formed Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Task Force. The task force was created under the 2026 legislative session’s implementing bill to evaluate how ABA services are delivered to children with autism under Florida Medicaid, and to recommend a path that keeps that care high-quality, family-centered, and financially sustainable.
The 10-member task force is chaired, ex officio, by Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) Secretary Shevaun L. Harris and includes physicians, researchers, and managed-care leaders from across the state. Brown is one of three members appointed directly by the Governor, and the only task force member whose organization is dedicated specifically to autism services. The task force is required to report its findings and recommendations to the Legislature by December 31, 2026.
Brown was selected for his more than a decade of experience building and running a high-quality, ethically grounded ABA provider organization. He co-founded Family Initiative in 2015 to make sure families affected by autism never hear “no” when they come looking for help. Since then, FI has grown into a nonprofit serving families across Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Sarasota, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, and Dade Counties, with almost 100 employees working across clinical, educational, and community-based programs.
“For families affected by autism, quality and ethics aren’t a checkbox-they’re the reason families choose us and stay with us. I’ve spent more than a decade building Family Initiative around that standard, and I’m honored the Governor sees value in bringing a provider’s perspective, in addition to a policy perspective, to this table,” David Brown shared. “My job on this task force is simple: make sure whatever Florida decides about ABA funding and oversight actually works for the families receiving care, not just the systems paying for it.”
Family Initiative said the appointment reflects the organization’s growing role in shaping autism policy at the state level, following Brown’s earlier participation in an AHCA video series on ABA ethical standards.
“David has spent more than a decade building an organization that never compromises on quality or ethics for the families we serve.” Vice President and Cofounder Anjali Van Drie stated. “I’m proud of what this appointment means. It brings a provider’s day-to-day experience into a conversation that will shape how Florida supports children with autism for years to come, alongside a group of thoughtful people who care about getting this right.”
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About Family Initiative
Family Initiative (FI) is a nonprofit organization founded in 2015 in Cape Coral, Florida, that supports families affected by autism through clinical services (ABA, occupational therapy, and early diagnosis and intervention), community-based programs, and Thrive Academy, a private K–graduation school for students with autism. FI employs almost 100 people across Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Sarasota, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, and Dade Counties.
