Fees and Insurance

The SAT FAQ below will answer many of your questions regarding consultations, rates, and insurance filing. There's also a list of questions you can ask your insurance company when verifying benefits. And, if you need help with insurance terms, there's a glossary.

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FAQs - Fees, Consults, Insurance

  • We provide short phone consultations. You may also make an appointment for a more substantive intake where we'll get to know you better, hear your concerns as well as discuss treatment options and services. We have six members of our team. The price of a consultation varies depending on which team member it is. We’ll be glad to discuss the details with you when you contact us to make an appointment.

  • At The SAT Project, we do not accept insurance. However, our services are insurance reimbursable as an out-of-network provider. For information about out-of-network reimbursements see the “How Do I Submit a Claim?” section.

  • Fees for our services vary. As an example, individual sessions are often in the range of $150 – $400. If this is entirely out of your price range, we do take sliding scale clients on a case-by-case basis. Please get in touch with us to discuss.

    You’ll be asked for payment at the time of your session. We accept cash, checks, credit cards, Venmo, Zelle, and PayPal. If you need to cancel your session we require 48 hours' notice. If you’re unable to let us know you’re canceling we will need to charge you for the session.

  • Our services are insurance reimbursable as an out-of-network provider. What that means is if you have an insurance plan that covers out-of-network providers you’ll be able to submit a claim form to them for partial reimbursement of your session. Many PPO plans reimburse for out-of-network services. If you are seeking out-of-network reimbursement, we’re happy to provide a super-bill which is essentially an itemized receipt for services that you send to your insurance company along with a claim form.

    Whether you’re in-network or out-of-network, insurance companies view therapy as a medical service. This means when you submit a claim for sessions, our super-bill has to have a diagnosis code and procedure code for you to get reimbursed. Early in treatment, we'll determine what the right diagnosis code is for your insurance company.

  • Keep in mind most health insurance plans have deductibles. This is the amount you have to pay for medical services before your coverage kicks in. Once that’s met, the plan expects you to cover a percentage of the therapy session fee, this is called your coinsurance.

    Out-of-network coinsurance rates are typically between 20% - 40%, meaning your insurance company will reimburse between 60% - 80% of the cost of each session. Of course, this varies by plan, so you must check with your insurance company to find out about your specific benefits.

  • Your employer can let you know if they offer a Health Savings Account (HSA) or a Flexible Spending Account (FSA). These accounts let you set aside funds for out-of-pocket medical expenses while lowering your taxable income. Here’s an article that describes the differences between an HSA and an FSA.

How to Verify Benefits

The best way to verify what kind of benefits you have is to call your insurance company’s member services line. You can find that phone number on the back of your insurance card. When speaking to your insurance company about benefits, ask the following questions:

  • Does my plan include out-of-network benefits for mental health care? Specifically, for outpatient psychotherapy? (Outpatient means treatment outside a hospital.)

  • Do I have a deductible for out-of-network mental health services? If yes, what is the remaining amount I will have to pay before my health plan starts to reimburse me for fees that I pay out-of-pocket?

  • What is my out-of-network coinsurance for outpatient psychotherapy?

  • Does my plan cover virtual outpatient mental health visits (or teletherapy)?

  • Do I need a referral from an in-network provider to see a specialist who is out-of-network?

  • How do I submit claim forms for reimbursement? (Claims are forms that are sent to your insurance company to receive reimbursement for sessions you paid for out-of-pocket.)

WHAT DO THESE TERMS MEAN?

We know dealing with health insurance can feel overwhelming, especially when you're trying to understand all the jargon. To help with that, we've put together an insurance term glossary. Get in touch if you have any additional questions.