Insurance:

I am what is called an “out-of-network (OON) provider” (please see the “OON Benefits” section for more information on using OON benefits to assist with the cost of therapy). This means that I unfortunately do not accept insurance at my practice or bill insurance directly. While I understand that this may make accessing therapy more difficult, I strongly believe that accessing therapy independent of insurance leads to the best experience and best outcomes. Below, I’ve outlined some of the reasons I’ve made this choice for my practice:

1. Using insurance allows your insurance company to determine the parameters of your care. Instead of decisions about your treatment being made between you and your provider, your insurance company may place arbitrary limits on the number of sessions you are allowed, which diagnoses warrant you receiving the care that you need or they may require extensive and burdensome paperwork from your provider to justify your need for treatment (which they may deny), etc. Sadly, all of these limitations are focused on cutting costs, not making sure you get the best care possible.

2. Using insurance gives access to your protected health information (PHI) to potentially many people. In order to pay for services, insurance companies may request and read your therapy notes which contain your PHI. Many of the issues, feelings and experiences you will discuss in therapy will be highly personal, sensitive and private. Unlike going to your primary care doctor, we’re not talking about knee pain or getting a bad cough. Operating as an OON provider ensures that what you talk about in therapy stays in therapy.

3. Low reimbursement rates and administrative burden for providers means decreased time and resources to put into the therapy process. Because the main goal for insurance companies in the current system is to maximize profits, taking care of providers and patients will always come second (or last). Unfortunately, this means that providers are commonly pushed into burnout and cannot provide the high-quality care that their clients deserve.