At Flourish Psychology, we genuinely believe that everyone deserves to receive comprehensive mental healthcare. Yet, over the past few years, we have moved away from accepting insurance for our services. We often qualify as an “out of network” provider, so patients that choose to work with Flourish Psychology can often receive reimbursement for many of our services. But many patients still wonder why we have chosen not to accept insurance for our mental healthcare.
We do this for several reasons, but one of the main motivations is that it offers several benefits for the patient. Patients that choose to work with a cash therapist often find that everything from the quality of the care to their engagement improve when not bound by insurance.
Advantages of Working Outside of Insurance
Insurance companies do not typically have the patient’s best interest at heart. Although they do pay for mental health treatments, every time they pay for a service, they lose money. In order to prevent that loss, health insurance companies have many requirements in place before they will accept insurance:
- They will only pay for specific therapies in a set timeframe.
- They will only pay for services with a specific diagnosis.
- They will only pay allow a patient to receive therapy when they are still diagnosed with the condition.
What we find in therapy is that most people do not fit into this type of box. Many people need a combination of approaches that change over time depending on what is occurring in the person’s life, yet therapists are limited to choosing a specific treatment (for example, CBT) for a set period of time.
Similarly, imagine a patient is able to reduce their depression, but is still at risk for other stresses and anxieties. That patient would no longer be covered once they no longer qualify. Any diagnosis a patient has also goes on their permanent medical record, something that is not typically true when a patient chooses to pay for services out of pocket.
Insurance companies also limit how much they are willing to pay, which limits the number of therapists available and pushes people towards inexperienced providers. That is not always ideal for those struggling with more severe mental health challenges.
Benefits of Out of Pocket Therapy
Patients that pay out of pocket are often able to receive better treatment that caters to them. They are not bound by a diagnosis and they can continue to speak to a therapist that offers them support as long as they need to. They are also able to work with the best therapists – those that specialize in specific issues – without limiting themselves to interns and new providers.
At Flourish Psychology, our goal is to make you feel whole. We believe this approach can help provide that. For more information about our services or connect, please contact us today.