My fees are:

Initial intake appointments: 

$180 per 75 minutes 

Individual Therapy Sessions:

$180 per 50 minutes

$200 per 75 minutes

$220 per 90 minutes

Individual-Mini Therapy Sessions:

$75 per 30 minutes

Crisis Therapy Sessions:

These sessions may take place if you find yourself going through a crisis and need to schedule a session in less than 24 hours. These sessions can take place outside of normal business hours or on days I am normally closed and are $225 per 75 minutes. These sessions can take place when I am available. 

The accepted forms of payment I take are: 

Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express

I also accept payment using services through PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, and straight cash. If you choose to use one of these services, you will receive a $5 discount fee for each session. 

In order to assist with the cost of therapy, and to make  it more accessible, I am happy to offer a number of slots on a sliding fee scale at $150 per 50 minute session. If the available slots I have are currently filled, I can put you on a waitlist until a slot becomes available, or I can refer you to another therapist.

As a payment option for our sessions I use Ivy Pay. You may keep a credit card on file with me via Ivy Pay, a credit card processing service.  The Terms of Use for using Ivy Pay can be found here:  https://www.talktoivy.com/ivy-pay-payor-terms-of-use

 Ivy Pay has a few benefits:

• I am able to charge you for sessions without swiping a card at each appointment.

• The service is secure and compliant with HIPAA standards for client confidentiality.

• Your credit card information is stored with Ivy Pay, not in my files or other records; I do not have access to your stored credit card information.

• You will be able to review past charges and payments in a text message thread.

This is how the service works:

• You provide a phone number, which I enter into the provider’s Ivy Pay app along with a charge for the session fee.

• Ivy Pay texts you a secure link leading to a page where you enter your credit card information and approve the first charge.

• After future sessions, I use Ivy Pay to charge the stored card; the app sends you a text informing you that I’ve done so.

• You will only be asked to enter your credit card information once (unless you need or wish to change the card), and you do not need to download an app or regularly interact with Ivy Pay.

• You will continue to have the option to pay via other methods if you’d rather not store a card with Ivy Pay, and can change or remove your credit card at any time.

Insurance: 

I work with Medi-Cal insurance and all plans that fall under Medi-Cal, and I am also an out-of-network provider. 

There is good news about having an out of network therapist. 

A good portion of my clients are reimbursed anywhere from 30% to 70% for each session by their insurance company, which means you will rarely have to pay the full fee. Just to make sure in advance, I suggest contacting your insurance company before we start our sessions to check what your benefits and reimbursements rates may be.

A few questions to ask your Insurance may be:

• Does my plan provide out of network benefits for mental health treatment?

• What percentage of the fee do I cover?

• What are the out of network reimbursement rate for codes 90832 (30 minute sessions) 90834 (45 minutes or more per session) and 90791 (intake appointment)?

• How many sessions per year does my health insurance cover? 

• Is there a deductible I need to meet before you will start to reimburse me? 

• Where do I send my superbill?

Since many PPO plans cover a portion of the cost, I  am happy to provide you with an itemized invoice called a "Superbill" to send to your insurance. In case you are wondering what a superbill is, it is a document that is created by myself and for you to provide to your insurance company to get reimbursed for our sessions. I am happy to explain further if you have any questions, as I would like to make this process as easy as possible for you!

Some more good news: 

In case you find the out of network insurance process to be kind of tricky and scary, I work with a company called Thrizer and Mentaya, both who can help make submitting your claims to insurance much easier and faster. They do all the work for you and will make sure you get reimbursed quickly so you will not need to go too much out of pocket right away. Please see the next question tab in regard to how they can assist you, and please reach out to me if you have questions about their process. 

Being a private  pay provider allows me to be the most flexible with your treatment and as confidential as possible. 

• Private pay therapy means I will not disclose your information, such as length of treatment and number of sessions to an insurance carrier. Insurance companies want to know additional information such as why you are going to therapy and what progress you are making or not making. In a private pay setting, everything will remain confidential between you and myself.  

• Insurance companies require I provide them with a mental health diagnosis, but if you do not have symptoms that fit a mental health diagnosis, I must give them one anyway. This will remain permanently on your health record.

• Insurance companies determine the length of each session and how many sessions we can have. Most insurance plans will only allow face to face sessions one time per week, but I like to offer telehealth sessions when clients are unable to come into my office for any reason.

• Therapy is one of the few professions where the goal is for clients to stop needing assistance. If I am doing my best work, then sooner or later, I will be out of a job, and that is how it should be. I want to invest deeply into your healing process and I want to operate without most insurance companies determining how long, how often, why, and how I can meet with you. This way I have more freedom and flexibility to meet you as you are, and I can stay more in sync with you, working wherever, whenever, and however long you may need me. 

Remember, you will not need me forever!

I have partnered with Thrizer, which is a modern mental healthcare platform that can improve the therapy experience for individuals. Thrizer will submit claims to your insurance carrier on your behalf after every appointment, getting you reimbursed relatively quickly and easily. You will not need to worry about dealing with your insurance or superbills, as Thrizer and myself be doing this on your behalf. This process and option with Thrizer will also not cost you anything. Most insurance companies take 1-3 months to reimburse individuals for out-of-network insurance claims, but Thrizer will help you to get reimbursed within just a couple of weeks from when you start your therapy. 

Thrizer has another option that can help make your finanical payments easier and less stressful, and this option is called "Thrizer Pay." This option allows individuals to pay what they actually owe for therapy sessions when they are using their out-of-network benefits. In other words, clients save upfront with their out-of-network benefits, rather than paying their provider’s full fee and waiting for reimbursement from their insurance company many weeks to months later. When doing so, Thrizer covers the rest of the provider's fee and then Thrizer waits for reimbursement from the insurance company on behalf of the patient.

Let’s use this example, say my fee is $180, and your out-of-network insurance is covering $160. Your net cost for the appointment is $20, but paying $180 and waiting for the $160 to come back can be a burden on your bank account, especially if you have numerous sessions and need to pay $180 multiple times.

With Thrizer Pay, your card is only charged $20 at the time of the appointment (plus Thrizer’s 5% fee). The remaining $160 is automatically floated by Thrizer, so I will still receive the full $180 immediately.

Thrizer then does what they do best on the backend – get the insurance reimbursement quickly. It is a true win-win.

Feel free to sign up on their website below and they will help you to determine what out-of-network benefits you have. This way you can be advised in advance of what your reimbursement rates will be, which can help you to plan ahead with regard to how much you will need to pay for sessions. Another option is you can get in touch with myself and I can input your insurance details into the Thrizer platform to find out what your out-of-network benefits will be, and then let you know what your reimbursement rates are. 

My goal is to make the out-of-network billing and reimbursement as easy as possible so this does not deter you from getting therapy. 

https://www.thrizer.com/