Rates & FAQS
Your questions are important to us.
Therapy
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Let’s meet for a free, 30 minute consultation! This will give you a chance to share a little bit about what’s been coming up for you and what you’re hoping to work on. This will also give us a chance to get to know each other and for you to see if the on paper fit translates to real life. If we decide together that it’s a good therapy match, then we will schedule our first appointment. If for whatever reason it doesn’t feel like the right fit, then I will work to provide you with some referrals to help you find the support you so deserve.
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My fee is $275 for online sessions and $300 for in-person appointments. These rates are based on a 50-minute session. Longer or shorter sessions are prorated accordingly. There are some limited sliding scale slots available.
Any session cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice will be charged the full session fee, unless we are able to reschedule in the same week. I do offer one grace cancellation per calendar year, because life happens to all of us.
Therapy times are reserved just for you and last minute cancellations do not allow me enough time to schedule another client for that time slot.
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I currently provide virtual therapy for clients across California and I offer in-person sessions in Irvine, CA. Please note, my in-person spots are currently full.
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At the outset of therapy, it is typically standard to meet once per week in order to develop a strong therapeutic relationship and begin the first steps of moving in the direction of your goals. A typical therapy session is 50 minutes with a set therapy time that is set aside only for you. As therapy progresses, we may find it is more appropriate to move you to a bi-weekly structure. Please not that I don’t offer sessions on a monthly basis unless a client is titrating out of treatment.
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Your privacy is important to us. It is The Worth and Wellness Psychology’s policy to respect your privacy regarding any information we may collect from you across our website, (https://www.worthandwellness.com/), and other sites we own and operate.
We request personal information when we need it to provide a service to you. We collect it by fair and lawful means, with your knowledge and consent. We also let you know the reason for collecting it and the ways in which it will be used.
We retain collected information for as long as necessary to provide you with your requested service. Any data collected will be stored and protected within commercially acceptable means to prevent loss and theft, as well as unauthorized access, disclosure, copying, use or modification.
We do not share any personally identifying information publicly or with third parties, except when required by law.
Our website may link to external sites that are not operated by us. Please be aware that we have no control over the content and practices of these sites and cannot accept responsibility or liability for their respective privacy policies.
You are free to refuse our request for your personal information, with the understanding that we may be unable to provide you with some of your desired services.
Your continued use of our website will be regarded as acceptance of our practices around privacy and personal information. If you have any questions about how we handle user data and personal information, feel free to contact us.
This policy is effective as of 7/1/2022.
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By law, you have the right to receive a “Good Faith Estimate,” or GFE, explaining how much your medical care will cost. Under the law, health care providers need to provide patients who do not have insurance or who are not using insurance an estimate of the bill for medical records and services. You have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate for the total expected cost of any non-emergency items or services.
You have the right to receive a GFE in writing at least 1 business day before your medical service. Within the context of therapy, we discuss the fee for your therapy service up front. However, the ‘No Surprises Act’ wants providers to make total fees clear. You can ask your healthcare provider for a GFE before you schedule a service.
If you receive a bill for $400 more than your GFE, you can dispute the bill. Make sure to save a copy or image of your Good Faith Estimate.
For questions or more information about your right to a Good Faith Estimate, visit www.cms.gov/nosurprises
Have any questions about therapy? Let’s connect.
All About Insurance
Worth and Wellness Psychology operates as an out-of-network practice, which means that we don’t directly bill your insurance.
You may still have access to therapy through your out-of-network benefits and many of our clients receive partial to full coverage for their appointments. We estimate that our clients with PPO insurance tend to receive reimbursement for up to 50% - 80% of the session costs.
Why don’t you take insurance?
That’s a great question. You may be wondering… if I have insurance, why wouldn’t I just work with an in-network provider? Here are some reasons why I choose to not take insurance.
More personalized care: Insurance companies will often only provide coverage for certain issues, a certain number of sessions per year, and at times they can be specific about what treatment approaches they will cover. I want you to be able to determine the number of sessions we spend together, rather than worrying about how many sessions are left for the year or whether your diagnosis will “qualify” as being reimbursable.
Fewer hoops to jump through: In order to get coverage, you do have to receive a mental health diagnosis. Insurance companies will not cover your therapy if you don’t have a diagnosis.**
Dedication to expertise and training: When I’m not in sessions, I love attending conferences, reading the latest research, and pursuing training and education. This allows me to stay up to date and to offer you the latest information and approaches in the field. It also helps me to show up to each session as both focused and available to your needs. I simply would not be able to do this if I spent my extra time chasing down insurance companies for reimbursement or over-scheduling myself to accommodate for the low pay offered by insurance companies.
More Time for You: Without the hassles of navigating our current healthcare system, I have the flexibility to offer morning, afternoon, and evening times to better fit your needs.
How does reimbursement work with an out-of-network provider?
Pay for your sessions at the time of service. Your credit card on file will be charged at the outset of each session. We accept all major credit cards as well as FSA/HSA cards.
Request a Superbill. Let your therapist know that you would like to receive Suberbills. Our system sends them out automatically at the end of each month. If you know that your insurance runs a little slower and you’d like them sent after each session, we’re also happy to do that.
Submit your claim You can directly submit your Superbill to your insurance company or you can use a third party app like Reimbursify or Mentaya.
Your insurance company processes the claim Once you submit a claim, it is counted towards your out-of-network deductible. Once this has been met, your insurance company will begin to reimburse you for sessions moving forward based on the “allowed amount” - or the portion of the session that is reimbursable based on your unique plan (which may sometimes be less than what you paid for treatment). Typically, you can expect to receive either a check or direct deposit with your reimbursement amount within a few weeks or months of filing your claim.
**A Quick Note about Superbills - in order to generate a Superbill, we will need to assign you a mental health diagnosis code. While many clients enjoy the benefits of a Superbill, there are certain times when you may choose not to utilize these benefits.
Some examples of clients who might not choose to acquire a mental health diagnosis code are: folks going through a contentious divorce, holding a job with higher rates of being sued (e.g., physicians, dentists, lawyers), or folks who would not be able to work with a diagnosis on record or who simply might fear stigma (e.g.. pilots, law enforcement officers, etc…).
It’s important to assess for yourself whether acquiring a mental health diagnosis is the right choice for your life circumstances and so I like to share this information with prospective clients so you feel empowered when making these decisions.
Verify Your Coverage:
What questions should I ask my insurance?
Step 1: Check with your insurance Company. You can locate the member service phone number on the back of your insurance card
Step 2: Find out if you have out-of-network coverage. Ask the rep: "Does my plan include out-of-network benefits for mental health care? Specifically for outpatient psychotherapy? Do you cover in-person and also telehealth?" Some insurance companies are no longer offering coverage for telehealth, so please be sure to ask this as well.
Step 3: Find out if you owe a deductible before the coverage kicks in. Ask the rep: "Do I have a deductible for out-of-network mental health services, and if so, what is the remaining amount I would have to pay before my health plan starts to reimburse me for any fees I pay out of pocket?"
Step 4: Find out how much your plan will reimburse you. Ask the rep: "What is the maximum amount my plan will reimburse for mental health service code 90834 (in-person) or 90834-95 (telehealth) with a Psychologist? If the rep does not provide a clear answer, ask: "What is the maximum allowed amount for mental health service code with a psychologist, and what percentage of the maximum allowed amount will my plan pay?" (That's the amount that they would give you back).