Fees and insurance

What therapy costs, in plain numbers.

Most practices make you email to find out. Here are the session rates, what a full course totals, the ways people make it more affordable, and the trade-off between paying directly and using your insurance benefits.

Session rates

Free Consultation
15 minutes · phone or videoFree
Initial Intake Session
60 minutes$175
Individual Therapy Session
50 minutes$165
Extended EMDR Session
80 minutes · planned in advance together, for EMDR work that needs room to finish safely$250

What a chapter of therapy typically costs

Most people want a number to plan around, not just a session rate. These are estimates:

≈ $1,330A typical 8-week chapterintake + 7 weekly sessions
≈ $1,990A typical 12-week chapterintake + 11 weekly sessions

Sessions are paid one at a time as you go. There's no package to buy up front and no long-term contract, and you can stop at any point. Where we plan extended 80-minute EMDR sessions into a chapter, each adds $85 to these estimates. The end of a chapter isn't a hard goodbye either. Plenty of clients come back later for a maintenance session or two at the standard rate.

For comparison, open-ended weekly therapy at a typical Utah rate runs somewhere around $6,000–8,000 a year, and often continues for several years. The focused model is built to cost less in total by being specific about what we are working on. You are not buying a package. You pay for the sessions you use.

Ways to make this more affordable

HSA and FSA funds

Therapy for a diagnosed mental-health condition is generally an eligible expense, so most clients can pay with an HSA or FSA card and cover sessions with pre-tax dollars. A lot of people don't realize this. Plans do differ, and not every kind of counseling qualifies, so check with your plan administrator before relying on it. I can't give tax advice. I can give you an itemized receipt.

Out-of-network reimbursement

On request I provide a superbill, which is an itemized receipt you can submit to your insurance. If your plan has out-of-network benefits, many reimburse a meaningful share once your deductible is met. There is a privacy trade-off in doing so, and it is spelled out further down this page.

Ecclesiastical or employer assistance

In Utah, many LDS bishops and other faith leaders have funds to help members pay for counseling. If that is useful to you, mention it during your consult and I can arrange billing directly to the third party with your written authorization. Some employers offer wellness stipends that reimburse counseling you've paid for, which is worth a quick check with HR. (Traditional EAP visits usually have to stay within the EAP's own provider network, so those generally can't be used here.) All of this is optional and entirely your call. Nothing is shared with a bishop, an employer, or anyone else without your written authorization. If you would rather no one know you are in therapy, paying directly keeps it private.

Spacing sessions out

Weekly sessions produce the fastest progress, especially with EMDR. But after the first month, some people move to every other week to make the cost work. Bring it up. It's a completely normal conversation to have.

Two ways to pay, and a real trade-off between them

I'm out-of-network with every insurance company. That leaves you with two legitimate options, and they trade off against each other. Neither is the 'right' one; it depends on what you value more.

Best if privacy matters most

Pay directly

  • Nothing is submitted to your insurance company
  • No mental-health diagnosis enters your insurance record
  • No claims reviewer ever sees that you were in therapy
  • You pay the full session fee (HSA and FSA cards work)
Best if cost matters most

Use your out-of-network benefits

  • Many PPO, POS and HDHP plans reimburse a meaningful share once your deductible is met
  • Your real cost can end up much closer to a copay
  • Requires a superbill, which carries a diagnosis code to your insurer
  • Reimbursement timing and amount are your plan's decision, not mine
The trade-off, plainly. Getting reimbursed requires a diagnosis code on the claim, and that code goes to your insurance company. For most people that is a non-issue. For people in sensitive professions, or anyone worried about future coverage, or anyone who simply wants this kept private, it matters a great deal. If keeping your record clean is worth more to you than the reimbursement, pay directly. I will not push you toward using your benefits.

Find out what your plan covers before you commit

Call the member-services number on the back of your insurance card and ask these four questions. It takes about ten minutes and costs nothing.

  1. Do I have out-of-network outpatient mental health benefits?
  2. What is my out-of-network deductible, and how much of it have I met this year?
  3. Once the deductible is met, what percentage of the fee do you reimburse for CPT code 90834 (a standard 50-minute therapy session)? And for 90791, the intake? If we have talked about extended EMDR sessions, ask about 90837 too. That is the code for the longer sessions, and it is the one people forget.
  4. Is there a session limit, and do I need pre-authorization?

If they ask for my provider details before they'll quote you anything, that's normal — email me and I'll send them the same day. Write down the answers and the name of the person you spoke to. If you want, bring those numbers to the consult and we can work out what therapy would actually cost you.

The fine print

I don't bill insurance. No diagnosis goes on your record, no claims reviewer decides when you're finished, and the work follows your goals instead of a coverage policy. That is what private pay (out-of-network) buys you. Payment is due at the time of each session.
Good Faith Estimate. Under the No Surprises Act you have the right to a written estimate of expected charges before beginning care. You'll get one before your first session without having to ask, and an updated one any time the plan changes. Read your full rights here →
Cancellations: Please give at least 24 hours' notice to change or cancel a session. Sessions missed or canceled with less notice are charged at the full session rate, the same standard most Utah practices use. A card kept securely on file is charged at each session, so payment takes care of itself.

Not sure whether this is worth the money for your situation? Ask on a free call and I'll tell you what I think.

See if we're a fit

Questions about any of this?

Bring them to a free 15-minute call. If you have already phoned your insurer, bring those numbers too and we can work out what this would cost you.

See if we're a fit
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