I accept clients who wish to pay privately for therapy, and am an in-network provider for a select few number of insurance companies. Even if you have benefits with the insurance companies I am in-network with, you have the right to opt out of utilizing your benefits. I work with several clients who have insurance, but choose not to use their benefits and here is why:
You are in control of your care: Even if you have mental health benefits, when using insurance, sometimes you are restricted to who you can see, or have a limited number of sessions you are able to utilize per year. By not using benefits, you are free to go to whoever you want for however long could be therapeutically beneficial for you.
Increased privacy and confidentiality
No psychiatric diagnosis: if you choose to file with insurance, I must give you a valid psychiatric diagnosis, which can negatively impact you in some ways. If you would like to learn more about this, please don't hesitate to ask me and I can explain further. Bottom line: no insurance involvement = no psychiatric diagnosis on your medical record.
Freedom to talk about whatever you have going on: You have the autonomy to consult with me on non-psychiatric issues that are important to you that aren't billable by insurance: relationship issues, developing personal insight, coping with life changes, developing healthy new skills.
Reduced cost of services: Fees can range depending on your mental health benefits. More on this under "Insurance Rates" below.
Insurance Rates
At this time, I am an in-network provider for:
I offer the complementary service of having your benefits verified for you prior to your first appointment so that you know an estimate of what payment you will be responsible for at the time of your appointment.
Please note that not all insurance verifications are 100% accurate -- I never know the exact amount due until the claim has been processed by your insurance company.
Your first appointment (called an intake appointment) takes 60-minutes. The first 5-10 minutes I will orient you to the therapy process and go over any questions you may have from filling out your paperwork. The remaining time will be spent asking you to elaborate on what you wrote in your intake paperwork so that I can begin the process of getting to know you, as well as learning how I can help. The last few minutes we will schedule your future sessions.
While it's common for most therapists to require you to come in early to fill out paperwork before your intake session, here is how I am different.
I always consider what I would look for in a therapist when implementing my systems. I know I sure wouldn't want to arrive 15/20 minutes early to an appointment when I already took an hour away from work, school, family to fill out paperwork, only to have the therapist glance at it for the first time as I enter the room.
I knew I had to create a better system to make it worth your while, all while showing you that I value the time you put into your intake paperwork. Here is some of what I do behind the scenes to prepare for your first appointment, and sessions thereafter.
I conveniently have all of my paperwork online for you to complete at least 48 hours prior to their first appointment in the comfort of your own home. This means you can arrive at the time of your appointment. No need to take off extra time waiting in the lobby.
Hate Calling Insurance Companies?...Same. If you're using insurance, before you come in for your first appointment, my biller will verify your insurance benefits for you and I will email you the estimate of what your benefits cover so that you can feel financially prepared for our sessions.
Collaboration with Other Professionals: I am all about collaborative care. I believe that it can be helpful to have a team behind you helping you reach your goals. Maybe you and your spouse are seeing a marriage & family counselor in addition to your individual sessions with me. Maybe you are under the care of a doctor to be treated for anxiety or depression symptoms. During our intake session, we will go over who else is in your world that is helping you try to get where you want to be, and I am happy to offer collaboration with these other providers, with your permission. This includes personalized documents that are specific to your care.
I accept cash, check, Venmo, and all major credit cards as forms of payment. I require each client, private-pay or insurance, to have a credit card stored on file through the HIPAA-compliant Simple Practice system that I use. All cards must have sufficient funds on them at time of session. No payment plans are provided.
If you are unable to attend a session for any reason, you must make modifications or cancel at least 24 hours beforehand. Otherwise, you may be charged for the full rate of the session.
Please contact me for any additional questions you may have. I look forward to hearing from you!