Frequently Asked Questions about Therapy and Counseling with Laurie
Do you just see women/birth parents?
Nope! I enjoy working with expectant and new parents of all genders. I welcome transgender individuals to my practice and am LGBTQIA+ affirming. I know that same sex, queer, and trans parents experience different challenges, discrimination and oppression and I'm ready to bring my humility and experience to support LGBTQIA+ families navigating those experiences with resilience. I've facilitated new fathers groups and worked with new dads individually - around their own adjustment, mood, parenting challenges, and to help them understand, process, and support their partners who may be struggling with perinatal emotional complications.
You specialize in perinatal mental health - can I still see you for therapy if I'm not pregnant or postpartum?
Yes! While I do have a specialty in perinatal (pregnancy & postpartum) mental health, which includes postpartum depression and anxiety etc as well as infertility, pregnancy loss, miscarriage, and stillbirth, I also see adults (18 and older) for other issues related to parenting, stress, mood, anxiety, body image, disordered eating, and identity challenges. The best way to determine if I might be a good fit for you is to schedule a free phone consultation (click blue button below).
Nope! I enjoy working with expectant and new parents of all genders. I welcome transgender individuals to my practice and am LGBTQIA+ affirming. I know that same sex, queer, and trans parents experience different challenges, discrimination and oppression and I'm ready to bring my humility and experience to support LGBTQIA+ families navigating those experiences with resilience. I've facilitated new fathers groups and worked with new dads individually - around their own adjustment, mood, parenting challenges, and to help them understand, process, and support their partners who may be struggling with perinatal emotional complications.
You specialize in perinatal mental health - can I still see you for therapy if I'm not pregnant or postpartum?
Yes! While I do have a specialty in perinatal (pregnancy & postpartum) mental health, which includes postpartum depression and anxiety etc as well as infertility, pregnancy loss, miscarriage, and stillbirth, I also see adults (18 and older) for other issues related to parenting, stress, mood, anxiety, body image, disordered eating, and identity challenges. The best way to determine if I might be a good fit for you is to schedule a free phone consultation (click blue button below).
What are your fees?
I charge $225 for a 60-minute initial evaluation appointment where I gather history, learn about your strengths and goals, assess current challenges, and make treatment recommendations, including follow up referrals if I do not think I am best equipped to meet your needs. Follow-up sessions are $175 for 50 minutes. I also offer an extended 80-minute session for $225. Extended sessions can be helpful for EMDR, complex trauma, or acute crisis situations. I accept HSA/FSA cards and debit/credit cards.
Do you accept insurance?
I am not contracted with insurance companies at this time.
You may have "out-of-network" benefits as part of your insurance plan, which may reimburse you for part of my fee. To use out-of-network benefits, you pay me for the session and I'll provide you with a detailed receipt called a "Superbill". You then submit that to your insurance provider (it's usually pretty straight forward for individuals to do this on the insurance company website) and then the insurance company would reimburse you a percentage of what you paid according to your benefits and their policies. There are also services like Reimbursify that can submit out-of-network claims for you, for a small fee.
If you would like to utilize out-of-network (OON) insurance benefits for therapy with me, you need to call your health insurance provider ahead of time and ask the following questions. You may need my NPI #1639208234.
I know that navigating mental health benefits and insurance can be a challenge. If you have questions about how you can use your insurance benefits to see me, please feel free to call me.
What is your cancellation policy?
I reserve a block of time for our work together. You can cancel or reschedule an appointment with 24 hours notice. If you cancel an appointment with less than 24 hours notice, or fail to show up, you will be charged a $120 late cancel/no show fee; missed appointments cannot be billed to insurance.
I charge $225 for a 60-minute initial evaluation appointment where I gather history, learn about your strengths and goals, assess current challenges, and make treatment recommendations, including follow up referrals if I do not think I am best equipped to meet your needs. Follow-up sessions are $175 for 50 minutes. I also offer an extended 80-minute session for $225. Extended sessions can be helpful for EMDR, complex trauma, or acute crisis situations. I accept HSA/FSA cards and debit/credit cards.
Do you accept insurance?
I am not contracted with insurance companies at this time.
You may have "out-of-network" benefits as part of your insurance plan, which may reimburse you for part of my fee. To use out-of-network benefits, you pay me for the session and I'll provide you with a detailed receipt called a "Superbill". You then submit that to your insurance provider (it's usually pretty straight forward for individuals to do this on the insurance company website) and then the insurance company would reimburse you a percentage of what you paid according to your benefits and their policies. There are also services like Reimbursify that can submit out-of-network claims for you, for a small fee.
If you would like to utilize out-of-network (OON) insurance benefits for therapy with me, you need to call your health insurance provider ahead of time and ask the following questions. You may need my NPI #1639208234.
- Does my plan cover outpatient individual therapy with a licensed independent clinical social worker (LICSW)? The CPT codes you can ask about are 90791 (initial psychiatric evaluation) and 90837/90834 (psychotherapy).
- Do I have out-of-network benefits for those services?
- Do I have a deductible for out-of-network mental health services? How much have I met toward that deductible?
- What is my copay or what percentage ("co-insurance") do I pay when seeing a mental health provider who is out-of-network?
- How many sessions does my plan cover in a year? How many sessions do I have left?
- Do you have different benefits, networks, or authorization processes I need to be aware of for telehealth or virtual sessions?
- Do I need pre-authorization or a referral from my primary care provider?
- What is the process to get reimbursed for out-of-network services?
I know that navigating mental health benefits and insurance can be a challenge. If you have questions about how you can use your insurance benefits to see me, please feel free to call me.
What is your cancellation policy?
I reserve a block of time for our work together. You can cancel or reschedule an appointment with 24 hours notice. If you cancel an appointment with less than 24 hours notice, or fail to show up, you will be charged a $120 late cancel/no show fee; missed appointments cannot be billed to insurance.
You have the right to receive a “Good Faith Estimate” explaining how much your medical care will cost
Under the law, health care providers need to give patients who don’t have insurance or who are not using insurance an estimate of the bill for medical items and services.
- You have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate for the total expected cost of any non-emergency items or services. This includes related costs like medical tests, prescription drugs, equipment, and hospital fees.
- Make sure your health care provider gives you a Good Faith Estimate in writing at least 1 business day before your medical service or item. You can also ask your health care provider, and any other provider you choose, for a Good Faith Estimate before you schedule an item or service.
- If you receive a bill that is at least $400 more than your Good Faith Estimate, you can dispute the bill.
- Make sure to save a copy or picture of your Good Faith Estimate.