Just a point of clarification – an IEP and a 504 plan are two entirely different things. The NYT article was about parents essentially buying questionable diagnoses in order to qualify their higher achieving students for 504 plans, generally for more time on tests to enable them to maximize their scores.
An IEP is a plan geared to students who, by reason of their disability, are found to qualify for specialized educational intervention services – such as support from a resource teacher, modifications to the curriculum, or being placed in a special ed or resource room. The NYT article didn’t mention or suggest that any of the families profiled had sought IEP’s. Given the hoops one has to jump through in order to get and enforce an IEP, I don’t think there would be much benefit to anyone in faking or exaggerating a disability for that purpose.