How much will my sessions cost?

We know that therapy is an expense and also an investment in yourself.

Tl;Dr: $50-225 and up. We try to keep your costs as low as possible by offering sliding scale fees or sometimes only charging your coinsurance amount. Different therapists have different fees based upon multiple factors.

If you have insurance: First, we determine your insurance benefits, any deductibles, and what your cost/copay/coinsurance will be. Because every plan is different, and because insurance coverage can be constantly changing, we do our best to tell you what your current copay will be or we will determine a fee based upon your budget. We also proudly offer “Courtesy Billing” for clients with out of network benefits where we do all the legwork of submitting claims and only charge you the coinsurance.

If you do not have insurance: If insurance is not involved, our therapists’ self-pay rates range from $50-400 depending on credential, training and experience, and your financial need.

During the academic year, we host Advanced Clinical Interns who can offer even steeper sliding scale rates!

Why does therapy potentially cost so much?

Such a real question! A combination of our “healthcare” system and increasing living costs creates a conundrum for psychotherapists: how do I help people in financial need but also afford my own needs, as well as have enough security to keep being able to work on becoming a better, less-stressed healthcare provider? Our group practice model resolves this by catering to budgets both high and low, so that proceeds go back into supporting our therapists’ professional and personal development, as well as allow us to provide access to care for clients with varying budgets.

Additionally, we are the antithesis of the growing mental health tech industry, which seeks to enlist thousands of vulnerable therapists (because they get paid for every therapist they hire or session they book) but then they don’t provide any benefits or taxes for their therapists, and simply prey upon therapists who are entering the field who don’t understand what they are contributing to. Some of these companies are also getting into hot water for mining/selling data, reducing pay for their therapists, or messing up member benefits with no advance notice to clients! In addition, the push to use Ai in our field is exactly how they are planning on catalyzing a healthcare system where robots reduce your symptoms quickly so that they can further reduce the money they pay for human health care providers.

By choosing a therapist at BIPS, you are helping more than just yourself - you are helping “the little guy” stand up to big corporations who are solely profit-driven and don’t care one bit about improving the healthcare industry or the average person’s access to healthcare.

Do I have to submit claims to insurance myself?

You don’t have to! We can take care of the A-Z for you, but if you want to submit on your own we can email you a Superbill after every session (or monthly) to provide to your insurance company for reimbursement. We recommend using https://www.reimbursify.com/ to easily seek reimbursement for a very small fee. Or, let us Courtesy Bill for you!

What is a deductible?

A deductible is a dollar amount your insurance may need you to satisfy before they begin reimbursing for your services. Some plans have waived deductibles for mental health, or waived deductibles only during the Covid health emergency. If your deductible applies, you may need to pay a higher amount before your cost drops to your coinsurance amount.

Can I pick my therapist?

Sure! If you resonate with one of our therapists you are welcome to indicate your interest in working with a specific person. Some may not be accepting new clients, in which case we will refer you to someone with a similar style. If you have a gender preference, we will honor that request when we match you. If you have another preference, we take that into consideration when we match you but we do not readily disclose our therapists’ personal information.

How has COVID-19 or recent political shifts affected receiving therapy? What if I am living outside of a state you are licensed in right now?

COVID-19 and the current political climate has created a lot of strain on healthcare services and healthcare professionals. This means it may be harder to find the right therapist, or you may notice that your therapist seems to have a lot on their plate, or recently got off insurance panels. We are all doing our best to prioritize our own self-care and continuing education so that we are best-prepared to serve you. We are human, too, and can empathize with how difficult recent events have been for all.

The rule is that we can only serve you if you are physically located in a state we have licensed providers in. Currently we rep NY, OR, MA, FL, and soon DC. We offer sliding scale in ALL locations we serve.

Do you prescribe medications, provide letters, or do neuropsychological evaluations?

Unfortunately, no. If you are in need of these services we can refer you to other professionals who may be able to assist you. We have a network of highly competent and friendly providers of these services.

How is my personal information protected?

We keep all of your personal health information as secure as possible, and we do not use Ai products with your data. We also use end-to-end encryption in all of our communication systems through Paubox or Simple Practice EHR. We are a paper-less practice, and use the most rigorously secure platforms on the market. We do not share your info to any unauthorized person or entity, nor spam you. We won’t even tell your mom.

I’m new to therapy, how does this all work?

Welcome! Psychotherapy sessions are usually 45-60 minutes, once per week. Longer or more frequent sessions can be discussed on a case-by-case basis. We ask that our clients make the best effort to commit to weekly sessions, but if a session needs to be missed, we will offer a make-up session. Sessions canceled within 24 hours that are not made up will incur a pre-determined fee based upon your therapist’s rate .

What if I travel often, or have a fluctuating work schedule?

We understand that some folx have unpredictable schedules. We will do our best to match you with a therapist who can offer flexible scheduling, but we will still encourage you to attend 4 sessions per month. If this isn’t possible due to truly extraneous circumstances, that’s ok, but if you miss 2+ sessions in a month your case will be subject to review. We value our therapists' time as well, so we hold a strict 24-hour cancelation policy.

I’ve loved working with your practice, how can I show gratitude?

The best compliment is a referral! We love word-of-mouth referrals, but we also appreciate positive reviews on Google, like any other business :) If you have any dissatisfaction, please contact us directly and we will resolve the issue personally and privately.