In the United States, it is common to use health insurance when visiting a medical professional. But, there are benefits to private pay instead of insurance when seeing a mental health professional.
Finding the right therapist whom you can trust and build a relationship with is essential. When you go through insurance, you have a limited amount of mental health professionals to pick from. Depending on what you need, you may not find the right provider within the proper specialty you need. This could affect the outcome of your sessions.
It is also becoming more common for mental health providers to decide not to participate in health insurance networks. When good providers opt-out, you could miss out on the perfect therapist for you simply because they are not in your network. When you pay privately, you are open to finding the right mental health provider to help you along your journey.
The mental health professional’s primary focus is on you. They want to help you make progress and find the best treatment solution designed specifically for you.
Private pay allows you to have more control over your treatment plan. That means you get to decide the length of your sessions, number of sessions, and any other decisions being made about your care. Insurance companies, more often than not, put clients in a one-size-fits-all treatment approach.
An outcome of an insurance-run treatment is that insurance companies often only cover a set amount of sessions and limit the length as well. Once you hit that number, the coverage is done regardless of whether you are ready to be done. When you pay privately, you and your therapist can work together and assess your mental health needs.
Insurance companies also require a diagnosis in order to be billed and they have a set list of diagnoses they cover. Which brings up the questions, how much do you really want your insurance provider to know?
When you go through insurance for counseling sessions, the insurance company expects documentation to justify the sessions. To bill your insurance written consent is needed, this allows the insurance company to have access to all your records and diagnosis information. This information could end up on your permanent health record, which could be used by insurance companies to increase your rates or prevent you from receiving life insurance.
Private pay gives you complete privacy over your mental health records. The insurance company has zero access to knowledge of seeking therapy, diagnosis, treatment plan, or anything else unless you decide to share it with them yourself.
And not all health insurance plans are created equally. Some insurance plans have a high deductible, which means you will still have to pay out of pocket but without the benefits of paying privately. In short you still have to follow the insurance company’s treatment rules and allow them access to your records.
There are many benefits of private pay for mental health care. If you are interested in working with therapists who put you and your treatment plan first, schedule a free consultation today at Doctors Park Mental Health Center.