How Do I Start Early Intervention in California?
Your pediatrician mentioned Early Start, or a friend said to call the regional center, and now you have a phone number and no idea what happens after you dial it. Meanwhile your child is two and a half and the clock feels like it is running. Starting early intervention in California is more straightforward than it looks from the outside, and you do not need a diagnosis or a referral to begin.
Here is the short answer: California’s early intervention program for children from birth to age three is called Early Start, and it runs through 21 regional centers around the state. Anyone can make a referral, including you. Eligibility is based on your child’s development, not on your income or immigration status.
What is Early Start?
Early Start is California’s version of a federal program. It exists under Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which requires every state to provide early intervention services for infants and toddlers with developmental delays or disabilities, delivered in a coordinated and family-centered way. In California the Department of Developmental Services oversees it, and services are arranged through your local regional center.
Who qualifies for Early Start?
Children from birth to their third birthday who have a developmental delay, an established condition likely to lead to a delay, or who are at risk of a developmental disability. Delay can be in any of several developmental areas, including communication, motor skills, cognition, and social-emotional development, so a child whose only concern is talking may well qualify.
Two things that do not affect eligibility are worth stating plainly, because they stop families from calling: eligibility does not depend on family income, and a child’s or parent’s immigration status does not determine eligibility.
How do I make a referral?
You call. Anyone can make a referral, including parents, doctors, family members, and childcare providers, so you do not need to wait for your pediatrician to start the process. Contact your local regional center directly, or call the state’s Early Start Baby Line at 800-515-2229 and they will point you to the right one.
When you call, describe what you are seeing in plain terms rather than trying to sound clinical. He is two and has five words. She does not respond to her name. He is not walking yet. That is exactly the information they need.
Which regional center do I call?
If you are not sure which one covers you, call the state’s free Early Start BabyLine at 800-515-2229 and they will route you to the right regional center based on your address. If you already know which center covers you, calling its Early Start intake line directly is faster. Every number here is the intake line for children under three, not the main switchboard.
Ventura County is simple: the whole county, from Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park to Camarillo, Simi Valley and Oxnard, is served by one center. Los Angeles County is split among seven centers assigned by where you live, so it is worth confirming yours with the state’s regional center lookup tool before you dial.
Ventura County
- Tri-Counties Regional Center covers all of Ventura County (plus Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo). Early Start referrals for Ventura County: 800-664-3177. You can also reach the Ventura office directly at 805-485-3177.
Los Angeles County
- North Los Angeles County Regional Center covers the East Valley, San Fernando and West Valley areas. Early Start intake: 818-778-1900.
- Frank D. Lanterman Regional Center covers Central Los Angeles, Glendale, Hollywood-Wilshire and Pasadena. Early Start intake: 213-252-8610.
- Westside Regional Center covers Inglewood and Santa Monica-West. Early Start intake: 310-258-4096.
- Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center covers Alhambra, East Los Angeles, Northeast and Whittier. Early Start intake: 626-299-4777.
- San Gabriel/Pomona Regional Center covers El Monte, Monrovia, Pomona and Glendora. Early Start intake: 909-620-7722.
- South Central Los Angeles Regional Center covers Compton, San Antonio, South, Southeast and Southwest. Early Start intake: 213-744-7000, extension 3226.
- Harbor Regional Center covers Bellflower, Harbor, Long Beach and Torrance. Early Start intake: 310-543-0102.
You do not need a doctor’s referral and you do not need to know what is going on with your child before you call. Say your child’s age and what you have noticed, and intake will take it from there.
What happens after I call?
An intake conversation, then an evaluation to determine eligibility, and if your child qualifies, a meeting to write an Individualized Family Service Plan. That plan lists what your family is working toward and which services will be provided. There are legal timelines attached to these steps, so ask what they are for your regional center and write the dates down.
If your child does not qualify, that is not the end of the road. It means the delay was not large enough to meet the state threshold, which is a funding line rather than a clinical opinion, and private therapy remains available.
What does Early Start cost?
Early Start services themselves are provided at no cost to families, though the program does have specific rules about insurance and certain fees, so ask your service coordinator to walk you through your situation rather than relying on what another parent told you. Your regional center is the right source for anything financial.
Should we wait for Early Start or start privately?
This is the practical question most families face, because eligibility, evaluation, and scheduling take time, and waitlists exist. Many families do both: start the Early Start referral because it is a genuine public benefit worth having, and begin private therapy in the meantime so that nothing stalls while paperwork moves.
There is also a hard stop worth planning for. Early Start ends at your child’s third birthday, and services after that shift to your school district, which is a separate process with separate rules. If your child is approaching three, ask about transition planning early. Whichever route you take, early intervention support works best when it starts before you have all the answers, not after.
Knowing the process helps most when you already suspect something. If you are still weighing it up, when a late talker becomes a delay worth acting on is the clearest place to start, how young is too young to begin answers the question most parents ask next, and what to do while you are on a waitlist covers the gap in between.
Ready to take the next step? Call (805) 702-3427 or schedule a free 15-minute consultation with a licensed pediatric therapist.
Therapy Clubhouse provides in-home and telehealth services today; our Westlake Village clinic opens November 1, 2026.
Medically reviewed by Nita Anavim, M.S., CCC-SLP. Last reviewed July 27, 2026.
Nita Anavim is a licensed speech-language pathologist (M.S., CCC-SLP) and co-founder of Therapy Clubhouse who helps children from birth to 18 build communication, language, and feeding skills through warm, play-based, family-included therapy.
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