Rates & Insurance

Rates for licensed therapists

• $135 for intake for individual (60 minutes)
• $165 – Intake for Couples
• $125- 135  for regular individual session of 50-55 minutes depending on the therapist of choice
• $80-90 for pre-licensed therapist
• $115 – 165 family and/or marriage counseling (80 minutes)

Rates for Pre-Licensed and Intern Therapists     

• $25-55 for Individuals meeting with Intern Students who are well supervised by a fully licensed therapist.
• Pre-licensed therapists are actively working towards their license and are well supervised by a licensed therapist.  Many people choose to work with a pre-licensed therapist because they know they are receive excellent care at a lower rate.  
• Those who see a pre-licensed therapist often pay less than those who use insurance and have co-pays or deductibles.  
• Pre-licensed therapist intake is $105
• Pre-licensed therapist 55 minute session is $80 for off peak hours and $90 for peak hours (3pm and after)

Neurofeedback

• Neurofeedback – please see the breakdown under the Neurofeedback information page.

Special Consideration for Victims of Sexual Assault

If you have been a victim of sexual assault in the state of PA you may be eligible for state funded counseling.  You do NOT  have to report the crime to any authorities to qualify.  To learn more, follow this link.  Matters of the Heart Counseling will assist you in filing claims and it is possible your counseling will be paid for by this program.  https://www.pccd.pa.gov/Victim-Services/Documents/Sexual%20Assault%20Counseling%20Claim%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf

Insurance

Many clients choose not to use insurance, and some services are not billable services to insurances (couples counseling for example).  When insurance is utilized it is important to understand your therapist must make a diagnosis for insurance to cover the session.  This diagnosis will be part of your permanent record and not all diagnosis’ are covered by insurance.  Also, insurances can and do dictate the course of treatment, limit the amount of sessions and the time in sessions.  This does not allow the client to have a voice in his/her own treatment.  Insurances may also request to review client records at any time to ensure compliance.

Special Consideration for Couples Counseling

Most insurances Matters of the Heart Counseling works with do not cover couples counseling and our practice does not bill for couples counseling.  Mental health parity laws treat mental health as a medical diagnosis and the need for couples counseling is not seen as a medically diagnosable issue.  Some practices may choose to do “work arounds” by billing as an individual, or individual with family member present, which is a 40 minute session.  Our practice has chosen not to do so as many insurance can review records and perceive the billing as fraudulent resulting in serious ramifications for our clinicians and practice.   Additionally, our sessions and therapeutic interventions are designed to last 80 minutes which is not typically a covered service by insurances.  Couples generally prefer the longer sessions over the 40 minutes allowed by insurances as it offers more time to go deeper and allows for more forward movement in the session.  Please review the specific pricing under our “Couples” tab.

Choosing Self-Pay and Out of Network Insurances

For those who choose self-pay, and those who have an insurance not accepted at MOH, you can check with your insurance to see if you have out of network benefits and you may self-submit for reimbursement.  This is on a case by case basis determined by your insurance carrier.  If you are interested in self-submitting your therapists will provide you with the necessary documents to do so. If your therapist is not licensed we will not be able to provide a superbill for reimbursement.

You can learn more about the new legislation regarding No Surprise Billing by following this link. https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises/consumers

Insurances accepted:

Insurances have individual credentialing processes and requirements which impacts which clinician is able to accept various insurances.  Below is a listing of available clinicians and the insurance accepted.

• Karen Mummau- Medical Assistance, Highmark, Capital Blue Cross, Quest, UPMC and Geisinger, Aetna
• Michael Osborne – Highmark, Capital Blue Cross, Geisinger, Quest, Quest EAP,  Independence Blue,  UPMC, Aetna, Tri-Care and Medical Assistance
• Christy Ranco – Quest, Highmark, Capital Blue Cross, Medical Assitance, Geisinger, Aetna, Independence Blue Cross, Tri-Care, Self Pay
• Casie Fisher – Employee Assistance Program through Mazzetti and Sullivan, Self Pay
• Hillary Bossert-Davis – Highmark, Quest, Quest EAP, EAP through Mazzetti & Sullivan, Independence Blue Cross, UPMC, Capital Blue Cross, Aetna, Geisinger, Tri-Care, Self Pay.
• Courtney Hammer – Capital Blue Cross, Aetna, Highmark, Quest, Tri-Care, Geisinger and Self Pay, UPMC, Independence Blue Cross Medical Assistance
• Macy Stanley –  Mazzetti & Sullivan EAP, self pay, Aetna
• Dan Grubb – Highmark, Mazzetti & Sullivan EAP, Geisinger, Capital Blue Cross, Quest, UPMC, Medical Assistance, Independence Blue Cross, Aetna, Tri-Care
• Nicole Hess – Highmark, Capital Blue, Quest, Quest EAP, Geisinger, Mazzetti & Sullivan EAP, Aetna, Luminaire, and self pay
• Rebekah Patrick Becker – Highmark, Mazzetti & Sullivan EAP, Geisinger, Capital Blue Cross, Quest Self Pay
• Carli Weimer – Aetna, Highmark, Capital Blue Cross, Quest, Geisinger, 
• Katlyn Leid – Highmark, Quest, Gesinger, Capital Blue Cross, Mazzetti & Sullivan,  Aetna, Luminaire and self pay 
• Cristina Paden - Self Pay, Mazzetti & Sullivan EAP, Aetna, Luminare, Trustmark  
• Doug Anderson - Self Pay, Mazzetti & Sullivan, Aetna, Luminare, Trustmark
• Blessing Lapp - Capital Blue, Highmark, Geisinger, Quest, UPMC, Aetna, Luminaire, Trustmark                                         

Questions to Ask your Health Insurance Provider

Depending on your current health insurance provider or employee benefit plan, it is possible for services to be covered in full or in part. Please contact your insurance to verify how your plan compensates you for psychotherapy services.

I’d recommend asking these questions to your insurance provider to help determine your benefits:

• Does my health insurance plan include mental health benefits?
• Do I have a deductible? If so, what is it and have I met it yet?
• Does my plan limit how many sessions per calendar year I can have? If so, what is the limit?
• Do I need written approval from my primary care physician in order for services to be covered?

Payment

We accept cash, check and all major credit cards as forms of payment as well as HSA and FSA cards.

Cancellation Policy

If you are unable to attend a session, please make sure you cancel at least 24 hours beforehand, otherwise, you may be charged for the full rate of the session. No shows are charged the full billable amount for the session. If you late cancel or no show 3 times (especially in a short period of time)  you may be asked to take a break from counseling until a time in which you can be more consistent.

Any Other Questions

Please contact Kathy Merlo, Office Manager, for specific questions regarding insurance and billing. kathymerlo@counselingmail.com