Payment for Services:
 | Payment for therapy is done at the beginning of the therapy session. I do this because it is more comfortable for clients. Many therapists have you pay at the end of therapy, but this can be very awkward for clients, especially after difficult therapy sessions. Therefore I ask all of my clients to come to therapy with their payment in hand. That way this part of the business is taken care of quickly and doesn't interrupt the flow of therapy. |
| I am only able to accept payment by cash, check, or money order at this time. |
| If you pay by check, I will charge you my bank's fees returned checks. I won't ask you to pay anything on top of my bank's fees. |
| If you are unable to pay for therapy for any reason, please inform me right away so we can work out something. |
| If you have a change of income, please let me know right away if we need to adjust your fee. |
| As the economy changes and inflation increases, I sometimes am required to raise my service fees. If this happens, I will inform you 30 days before the fee increase. I will provide you the information in writing and require your signature to the increased fee. That should give you plenty of time to make adjustments in your budget if necessary. |
| I do not charge a fee for referrals. |
| I do not typically charge for brief phone contacts, unless you require a phone session. Phone sessions over 20 minutes will incur your usual fee adjusted by the hour in 15 minute increments. So if we spend 20 minutes on an emergency phone call, you will be charged for 15 minutes. If we spend 30 minutes you will be required to pay half of your fee, if your regular therapy time is 50 minutes, etc. |
| I do not accept insurance for several reasons, however if you are a person under the age of 21 and have MediCal, I can provide you with therapy through the Stonewall Outpatient Clinic. For more information about this please go to the Fee, Payment Policies and Insurance Section. In this section, I explain the reasons I have chosen not to accept insurance. In my opinion, providing a fee-for-service service is in the best interest of my clients. I do this to protect your interests. |
| If you are going on vacation and will miss a session or two, please discuss this with me in advance. I won't charge you for missed therapy appointments if you are going on a planned vacation. Please let me know about an upcoming vacation at least 2 weeks prior to your vacation. |
| Negotiable Fees - I will negotiate my fee with you. I understand that therapy can be very expensive and for you to feel like you are getting your money's worth, it is important that you feel you are paying a fair price for my services. I am able to negotiate a fair fee with my clients, but please also be aware that in order to provide my clients with quality services, I do need to make a fair wage. I do not want money to be an obstacle for obtaining quality therapy. |
