Fees & Billing
Fees for Service
50-55 min
APPOINTMENT
$170
90 min
APPOINTMENT
$250
90 min
GROUP THERAPY APPOINTMENT
$50
Tandem Columbus provides reduced fee services in solidarity for 20-30% of our clients on a weekly basis. We use the Green Bottle Method to help determine a sliding scale fee. We trust our clients to be honest in the assessment of their own economic reality and self-determine where they fall on the sliding scale. We’ll demonstrate accountability by facilitating regular conversation throughout the course of therapy to ensure the financial agreements between ourselves and our clients continuously benefit everyone involved.
We will attempt to prioritize folks without mental health insurance benefits, or folks who are on medicaid and/or a marketplace insurance plans knowing services are often limited. If you would like to discuss your sliding scale options, please let us know in your initial contact.
Billing & Insurance
As an organization, we do not contract with insurance groups and are unable to bill most insurance groups on your behalf. Every therapist at Tandem Columbus should be considered an "out-of-network" provider, unless otherwise stated by your individual therapist. It is important to know that you may pay a higher cost for our services compared to services with an in-network provider outside of Tandem.
We will gladly provide referrals to an in-network provider outside of Tandem if you decide another billing agreement will better fit your needs.
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Unfortunately, most people do not have access to adequate mental health benefits–even those who are paying high insurance costs. We know that all insurance plans are not equal. To help address inequities in the current health system, Tandem charges an independent rate to avoid privileging those who can afford more comprehensive insurance plans over others, and to help accommodate folks experiencing financial strain. By charging our full service fee, we are able to provide sliding scale fee services to 20-30% of our caseload for folks experiencing financial hardship; folks without insurance; and folks who are unable to afford the cost of counseling out-of-pocket.
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Many insurance groups do not adequately cover relationship, family, or group therapy despite the research demonstrating support for each of these approaches to therapy. Additionally, most insurance groups restrict coverage for sexual health issues and often will deny treatment.
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Many individuals and families have high deductible plans that require them to pay out-of-pocket for these services as they would without insurance coverage. Some individuals/families spend the year working towards paying off a deductible and never experience the benefits of "in-network" coverage. We have also found that some insurance groups reimburse the member (you) for out-of-network services more than they would reimburse for in-network services, putting more money back in your pocket.
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Insurance groups require therapists to diagnose their client with a mental health disorder to reimburse for counseling services. While we believe diagnosis can benefit those who are experiencing a mental health disorder by ensuring resources and access to care, we also believe counseling can benefit those who do not meet the requirements of a mental health diagnosis. By providing counseling to folks who are not experiencing mental illness, we can reduce the possibility of experiencing mental illness over the life course. We believe everyone should have access to counseling, whether they are in a crisis; managing a long-term mental health condition; seeking to strengthen their relationships; or are otherwise feeling well and looking for feedback, perspective, and insight to support new goals.
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Insurance companies have access to all of your medical records, including diagnoses, medical notes, and personal history. When contracting with insurance companies, we cannot guarantee the confidentiality of your protected health information.
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Insurance companies control the number, length and frequency of therapy sessions, and restrict the therapist’s ability to negotiate fees and payment. We firmly believe you and your provider are best suited to make all of these decisions together. Additionally, we are able to provide more flexibility in regard to scheduling, rescheduling, and cancellations by refusing insurance contracts and remaining "out-of-network".
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Contracting with insurance companies costs us lots of time, money, and frustration--sometimes without any benefit to you. Rather than prioritizing our relationship with insurance groups, we would much rather spend our time getting to know you and providing you with an excellent counseling experience.
There are many reasons why we do not contract with insurance groups:
If you choose to use your insurance plan to offset the cost for counseling services at Tandem, most people will need to have insurance coverage that includes "out-of-network" benefits ("out-of-network" insurance benefits are not usually available through the marketplace/"Obamacare", or most HMO policies). It is important to know: Most insurance groups require a diagnosis to reimburse for counseling services. If you plan to use your out-of-network benefits, you and your provider will need to discuss the documentation of a clinical diagnosis at the start of your work together. Please note: if you are working with a pre-licensed intern or trainee at Tandem Columbus, your services are unlikely to be covered by your insurance in- or out-of-network.
To assist clients in obtaining the most accurate information on expected costs of services when applying insurance benefits, we recommend asking the following questions when contacting your insurance company’s member services (the phone number for member services can typically be found on the back of your insurance card):
1. Is psychotherapy/outpatient mental health care covered under my plan?
2. Is telehealth covered? (If applicable)
3. Do I have a deductible that I have to meet? What is my deductible?
4. What is my coinsurance or copay for outpatient mental health therapy sessions?
5. Is there a limit to the number of sessions I can receive on an annual basis?
6. Can I petition to receive a “single-case agreement” to have my sessions at Tandem covered at an in-network rate?
Applying your insurance benefits
Payments
Payment in-full is due at the time of your counseling appointment. Your credit/debit/HSA/FSA card on file will be charged unless you notify your therapist of another form of payment.
We will work with you to try and ensure employee benefits, or other insurance benefits can be utilized.
