Dr. Heather Watson
Insurance & Fees
I Accept the Following
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Independent Health
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If you have a health insurance policy, it will usually provide some coverage for mental health treatment. You will be held responsible for full payment of our agreed upon fee should your insurance company deny benefits or should your coverage lapse. Therefore, it is very important that you find out exactly what mental health benefits your insurance policy covers. Read your plan carefully and call your service representative if you have questions.
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Please check your coverage carefully prior to your first appointment by asking the following questions:
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Do I have mental health benefits?
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What is my deductible and has it been met?
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How many sessions per calendar year does my plan cover?
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How much does my plan cover for an out-of-network provider?
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What is the coverage amount per therapy session?
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Is approval required from my primary care physician?
If I am not in your network, I accept direct pay, or I can provide you with a superbill for you to submit to your health insurance company to receive out-of-network reimbursement. Please be verify your out-of-network coverage, as you may only receive partial reimbursement.
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Payment or co-payment is due at time of service by cash, check, credit card, or HSA.
Direct Pay
Paying for psychotherapy out of pocket minimizes the exposure of your protected health information (PHI). Whenever you use your insurance benefits to cover therapy, you agree to release certain type of information to the insurance carrier in order to a) verify your eligibility for coverage, b) pre-authorize services (if applicable), and c) to process claims to obtain payment. As the result, I inform the insurance carrier of such private information such as the nature of the issues you struggle with (presenting problem), psychiatric diagnosis, your treatment plan and prognosis. With direct pay, your therapy remains completely private (with the exceptions to confidentiality such as in the event of harm to self or others, etc.) and there is no session limit determined by a third party.
Direct pay allows you to have control over your treatment. For instance, more intense (2x week) or longer-term therapy may not be covered by insurance because it may not be viewed as "medically necessary," although beneficial. Direct pay allows you to also determine the therapist of your choice instead of having to choose from in-network providers. Additionally, out of pocket medical expenses can also be tax deductible.
Fees
Initial Intake: $225
Psychotherapy Session: $200