Policies & Fees

Cancellations

When you make an appointment, that time is reserved solely to focus on you and your care. It is not available to any other patients. Should you miss an appointment, our doctor will attempt to contact you to make certain you are all right, and to reschedule.

Any follow up no-shows or cancellations less than 24 hours in advance will be charged at the normal rate for the given visit. For initial visits no-shows or cancellations less than 48 hours in advance will be charged at the normal rate for the given visit.

What are the fees?

Garden Psych is a fee-for-service practice and does not participate with insurance plans, Medicare or Medicaid.  After many years of experience in providing services under managed mental health care plans, we have concluded that it is not in the best interest of our patients to contract with third party payers. Managed mental health care companies often dictate the amount of time and frequency of therapy that therapists are able to provide.  At Garden Psych, we believe that the decisions regarding the length of therapy sessions and frequency of therapy should be made by the individuals and families receiving treatment in consultation with their therapist.

We feel that it is critical that you approach us as an educated consumer. If you have looked for psychiatrists in the area before, you will know that the vast majority Child Psychiatrist do not participate with insurance due to the limitations placed. Many managed mental health care plans insist on brief medication visits of ten minutes duration and do not offer in-home telepsychiatry sessions. At Garden Psych, we believe that the complexity of medication management with children, adolescents and adults as well as the need to coordinate treatment requires a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes. We also believe it is possible to provide high quality care in the family’s own home. These standards are consistent with the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry treatment guidelines and we are proud to provide this high quality care.

For your convenience, we accept Flex Spending Accounts(FSA), Credit Cards, paypal and checks. We do provide you with a receipt, titled a “Superbill.” Many insurance with out-of-network coverage will reimburse you typically 70% of the Superbill. This document will include certain critical pieces of information, including what are called CPT codes and diagnostic codes, which insurance uses for billing. In order to file a claim, you would either call your insurance company (the number is typically listed on the back of your insurance card) or go to their website. Your insurance company will mail you a check for the portion of the fee that they reimburse.  The insurance company and doctor do not communicate directly, leaving control and privacy in your hands.

Understandably, many patients prefer to use a mental health provider who participates directly with insurance.  This is perfectly understandable, and you may choose to do so at any time while taking part in our practice.  In fact, many patients choose to see us for an initial expert evaluation and treatment plan, and then take this plan to their provider of choice in their insurance.  We would be happy to help you and your family in whatever way works best for you!

CPT codes

Insurance companies use specific codes, called CPT (Current Procedural Terminology) codes, to determine billing and repayment.  So that you may use our Superbills for insurance reimbursement, our billing team tirelessly remains on top of the latest changes to these codes to ensure the maximum repayment for your out of pocket expenses.  Some CPT codes will be listed on your bill without an associated charge and are used for documentation or record keeping purposes.  Please note that you should never be surprised by a charge – if something does not look correct on your bill, please call me so that we can discuss and potentially remove it!

Documentation

Brief documentation is not charged. This may include one-page letters of various sorts.
More extensive documentation (including disability paperwork) is charged per page, but don’t worry – all fees will be discussed before you are charged.

Are there ways to make services more private?

At our initial phone contact with us, you can request to be a Maximum Privacy Client. We are able to take extra special measures to guide your privacy and anonymity. We accept payment through cryptocurrency called Monero which is based on absolute privacy. Additionally, we utilize GoodRx as an alternative to your insurance for you to be able to fill your medications. For more details see our privacy page.