Fees

Individual therapy sessions are generally 55-60 minutes in length and my current out-of-pocket fee as of January 2024 is $200. 

I do not offer a “sliding-scale fee.” While I understand not everyone can afford my fee, I have put a lot of thought into fee setting for my private practice and choosing a reasonable and fair level of compensation for myself given my experience, training, business expenses, and the local cost of living. Instead of lowering my fees, I choose instead to offer one pro-bono spot in my schedule reserved for single mothers or undocumented individuals who do not have health insurance. 

About Insurance

I am no longer in-network as an insurance provider, with one exception. I continue to accept SHIP for Cal students at Berkeley (i.e. Wellfleet in cooperation with Blue Shield of CA).

If you have a PPO plan, I may be able to work with you as an *out-of-network provider; I no longer work in-network with insurance.

*Note: Please ask your health insurer specifically about your behavioral/mental health benefit and ask if you are entitled under terms of your PPO plan to see a provider out-of-network.

If so, and we proceed based on this arrangement, you would be responsible for payment of services on a weekly basis, and at your request, I would provide you with a statement called a “Super Bill” that you can submit to your insurer for some reimbursement. The percentage reimbursement differs from plan to plan, so you must work this out directly with your insurance company. Also check if you have a deductible, and the amount you must satisfy before you are entitled to reimbursement. I partner with Mentaya in determining if you have out-of-network benefits. See 

SHIP Co-Pay

If you are using SHIP, please be prepared to be charged for the $15 co-pay after each session. My billing system will automatically charge your credit card. If the automatic charges are denied, I will ask you to update the credit card on file, or to pay via a different method. Please be on top of these payments; with more than 2 unpaid co-pays it is my policy to pause services until your balance is brought up to date. Also, please see my cancellation policy below.

**On occasion there may be an issue with the credit card used to process credit card payments through my billing program, and charges may not be completed or they may be denied for some reason. If this happens, I reserve the right to charge any outstanding balance immediately, once a replacement card has been put on file, to bring the balance on your account up to date. I do try to keep on top of monitoring this, but when it’s busy I don’t always catch missed charges right away.

Policies

Cancellations

I have a 48-hour cancellation policy for sessions, and while I always appreciate as much notice as possible, full session charges will apply for cancellations with less than 48-hr. notice. “Full session charges” for those using health insurance means the co-pay plus the amount insurance would normally cover. 

Once we make an appointment, you will be charged for that appointment whether you attend it or not, unless you notify me at least 48 hours prior to the meeting. If you are unable to keep an appointment without adequate notice, please expect to pay for the missed appointment, as I have reserved the hour for you and am not always able to fill it with another client on short notice. Insurance will not pay for missed sessions.

I would like to remain flexible enough to deal with certain situations, such as sickness or personal emergency situations, and if this comes up, I will do my best to reschedule you—unfortunately, it is not always possible to offer other times within the same week. By missing your regular appointment time without adequate notice, you risk being charged for the hour.

Please let me know of any vacation or other plans that will mean missing a regularly scheduled session. I appreciate having an email of the dates, even if you tell me in session.

Confidentiality

What you say to me, as well as the fact that we have a therapeutic relationship, is confidential. I will not reveal any information about you unless I have your written permission to do so. Legally, I am mandated by law, to report to the appropriate authorities if I believe that you are a danger to yourself or to others; or if I have a reasonable suspicion to believe that child abuse is occurring. Those situations would constitute a limit to confidentiality.

Voice Messages and Other Communications

First Contact

If you are contacting me for the first time and want to know about openings, please leave a voice message, including a few good times to reach you If you haven’t heard back from me, please feel free to reach out again. The most efficient way to get through to me is to send an email.

Active Clients

Active clients may leave voice messages 24 hours a day on my regular business line: (510) 859-4362. I check it every day at least once. If you leave me a vm or send a text, I will return your call as soon as possible. Please note that I often have my phone set to “Do Not Disturb” because I am in session. Please reserve use of text messages for scheduling issues, or if you are running late, for example.

Note: I do not respond to lengthy text (or email) messages that go into detail about your experiences, and I discourage you from doing this. Please reserve that information for a secure setting, such as your weekly session. 

If you choose to text or email, please beware that these are not secure forms of communication, and it would be a better choice to speak to me directly in the privacy of our session. Read more. Please limit contact in any written form to scheduling issues only.

Join My Waitlist

If you call and hear that I currently have no openings, you may ask to be waitlisted by emailing. Please Contact Me and type “Join Waitlist” in the subject line. It would be helpful if you could include the following information in your email:

NOTE: I work as an out-of-network provider, except those with SHIP coverage through Cal. (If you have a insurance PPO plan, it is likely that you will be able to seek some amount of reimbursement for fees paid directly to me for services. Call your insurance company to clarify the terms and the process for submitting claims.)

If you are on the waitlist and I have an opening that matches your availability, I will contact you. Otherwise, scheduling a first appointment can be hit or miss, as my openings generally fill from a waitlist.

From time to time I run groups. You may also consider joining one as it can be a way to prepare yourself for individual therapy when a slot opens up. 

Free Consultation

I generally try to return these requests as soon as possible, but please understand that my schedule is almost continuously full. If you are wanting to meet or consult, it’s easiest for me to schedule time on Mondays. Consultations are brief, generally 15-20 minutes. 

Telehealth

My sessions are being offered either in-person, or Telehealth on a Zoom-based service called Secure Video. I will schedule regularly repeating appointments with you, but expect to receive a new link to connect for each meeting.

I offer services only in the State of California with one exception. Prior to the pandemic, a Florida state law was passed in 2019 that enabled me to register there as an out-of-state telehealth provider (see Florida Telehealth on the internet at http://www.flhealthsource.gov/telehealth/ for general information, and click here shorturl.at/cluKO to verify my registration).

Reporting Complaints