Why don't you take insurance?
There are a variety of reasons I do not work directly with insurance companies. My highest priority is to serve you with the best possible care. One of the main reasons I do not take insurance is my belief that paying out-of-pocket allows me to give you the best possible care.
Many people do not realize that when you use your insurance, there is another person in the room - your insurance company. In order to use your benefits your therapist has to disclose, with your consent, your personal information in order to verify your eligibility, pre-authorize services, and process claims to obtain payment.
This includes such things as:
-the nature of your issues for counseling
-psychiatric diagnosis
-your treatment plan
-how long you will have the problem.
If I submit a bill to the insurance companies on your behalf, your confidential information is processed by the insurance company and then stored in a database. Anyone who is involved in the processing or handling of your claim may have access to your records and anyone who has a legitimate reason to access the medical database, such as insurance companies and future employers, can view your confidential records.
So what does this mean?
Out-of-Network Insurance Benefits
Though I do not take insurance directly many PPOs and HMOs will cover all or a portion of my fee using your out-of-network benefits.
If you have an HSA, flexible spending account, or medical savings account you may also be able to use these funds. If you would like to use your insurance, please contact your insurance company and ask what coverage you have to see an "out-of-network provider". If possible, ask them to fax or email you a copy of your coverage so that you can use this when you submit documents to them in the future.
It will be helpful to ask them the following questions:
- Do I have mental health insurance benefits?
- What is my deductible and has it been met?
- How many sessions per year does my health insurance cover"
- What is the coverage amount per therapy session?
- Is approval required from my primary care physician?