How to get an AAC device

Step one: ask for an evaluation

Nobody gets a device without an AAC evaluation by an SLP. There are two ways in, and you can pursue both at the same time.

1. The private route

   Find an SLP with real AAC training — not every speech therapist does this work. Right here in Murfreesboro, Little Luminaries Therapy Services (opens in a new tab) does local AAC evaluations, funding paperwork, and family coaching. Other options are in the AAC directory. Call your insurance the same week and ask what they need for a speech-generating device.

2. The school route

   Email your child’s IEP team a written request for an assistive technology / AAC evaluation. Put it in writing — that’s what starts the legal clock. The district evaluates at no cost to you and the results feed the IEP. Our IEP & 504 guide has the request-letter language and Tennessee’s timelines.

3. Line up the paperwork early

   Most plans want a doctor’s order alongside the SLP’s report. Ask your pediatrician’s office and your insurer, in the same week, exactly what each needs — then write both answers down with the date and the name of who told you.

What the evaluation actually involves

It’s not a test your child can fail. The SLP is doing feature matching — figuring out which system fits this particular kid:

• How they’ll touch it. Finger, stylus, switch, or eye gaze; how big the buttons need to be; whether motor control changes when they’re tired.
• Vision and hearing, since those shape symbol size, contrast, and layout.
• Language now and language later. A good system has room to grow for years, not months.
• Trials of more than one system, ideally over several sessions in real situations.
• Interviews with you and the school — where communication breaks down, and what your child most wants to say.

You walk out with a written report naming a specific device and app and — the part that matters for funding — spelling out medical necessity: what your child cannot communicate without it, and why cheaper options won’t do. Ask for a copy for your folder.

Trials and timelines

Trial before you buy. Nobody should commit a child to a vocabulary system based on a demo video.

• TTAP — the Tennessee Technology Access Program runs a free device loan library that includes AAC. Borrow one, live with it, decide honestly. It also bridges the gap while a device is on order or in for repair. tn.gov TTAP (opens in a new tab) · 1-833-772-TDHS (8347)
• Manufacturer trials your SLP can request, and free trial codes some apps provide through your therapist.
• Timeline, honestly: months, not weeks — scheduling, report writing, prior authorization, then ordering. Ask each office its current turnaround, write that date in your folder, and follow up on it rather than waiting to be called.

The systems worth knowing

There is no “best” one. These are the systems commonly used, from several different companies — the evaluation determines which fits your child, and a rep can often bring devices out for a trial before anyone commits. The real first question isn’t “which brand” — it’s whether you’re buying an app for a tablet you already own, or pursuing a funded dedicated device. Those are completely different processes, so the list below is split the way the decision actually gets made. Your SLP’s recommendation beats any list, including this one.

Apps that run on an iPad you already own

Bought like any app, usually $50–$300 — no insurance process, working today. The trade-off: a family iPad invites Netflix negotiations, and apps aren’t built to survive being thrown.

Dedicated speech-generating devices

Purpose-built hardware that does nothing but communicate — more durable, louder, no games to fight over, and the category insurance and TennCare are most likely to fund, because it’s billed as durable medical equipment through the evaluation-and-funding process above.

Eye gaze and alternative access

For children who can’t reliably use a touchscreen, the same vocabularies run through eye tracking, switches, or head pointing — this is exactly the situation where the evaluation matters most, because access method drives everything else.

The device arrives. Now the real work.

A device in a backpack teaches nothing. What builds communication is you using it while you talk — pointing to “more” as you say more, to “all done” as you clear the table, every day, without asking your child to do anything back. Model far more than you demand.

• Keep it charged, out, and in reach — at dinner, in the car, at Grandma’s.
• Never take it away as a consequence. It’s a voice, not a privilege.
• Program the words your child actually wants: silly ones, rude ones, the dog’s name, “stop,” “go away,” “I don’t like it.” Protesting is communication too.
• Exploring the buttons isn’t misuse — it’s babbling, and it’s how this is supposed to start.
• Get school, sitters, and grandparents on board. Written into the IEP is best.

If your child is a gestalt language processor, whole-phrase buttons belong alongside core words. If apraxia is in the picture, AAC and speech therapy run together, not one after the other. The everyday habits live in our parenting tips.