Fees and insurance

What therapy costs, in plain numbers.

Most practices make you email to find out. Here's what I charge, which insurance plans I'm in-network with, what a full course usually totals, the ways people make it more affordable, and the trade-off between paying me directly and using your insurance.

Session rates

Free Consultation
15 minutes · phone or videoFree
Initial Intake Session
60 minutes$150
Individual Therapy Session
53 minutes$150
Extended EMDR Session
80 minutes · planned in advance together, for EMDR work that needs room to finish safely$225

What a chapter of therapy typically costs

Most people want a number they can plan around. These are private-pay estimates; with in-network insurance your total is your copay or coinsurance per session instead:

≈ $1,200A typical 8-week chapterintake + 7 weekly sessions
≈ $1,800A typical 12-week chapterintake + 11 weekly sessions

You pay one session at a time, as you go. There's no package to buy up front and no long-term contract, and you can stop whenever you want. If we plan extended 80-minute EMDR sessions into a chapter, each one adds $75 to these estimates. And the end of a chapter isn't a hard goodbye. Plenty of people come back later for a 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 it often continues for several years. Working in focused chapters is meant to cost less in total, because we stay specific about what we're working on. You're only ever paying for the sessions you use.

Insurance I'm in-network with

SelectHealthRegence BlueCross BlueShieldAetnaCignaCarelon Behavioral Health

I'm in-network with these plans, which means your cost per session is whatever your plan sets as your copay or coinsurance, and if you have a deductible you pay the plan's contracted rate until it's met. That's usually a good deal less than the rates above.

Billing for these plans runs through Headway, a company that handles insurance billing for independent therapists. Before your first session you'll set up your insurance details with them, and they'll tell you what you'll owe per session so there are no surprises. I'm still the only person you see; Headway handles the paperwork.

If your plan isn't one of these, I'm out-of-network with it. That's the private-pay path described below, and many plans still reimburse part of the fee through out-of-network benefits.

Covered by one of these plans but would rather not use it? That's your decision to make, not mine. Some people prefer that no claim or diagnosis reaches their insurer. Tell me before the first session and we'll document your choice in writing.

Panel status changes over time, and a new contract can take several weeks to show up in an insurer's own provider directory, so I may not be listed there yet even though I'm in-network. If your plan says I'm in-network and this page doesn't, or the other way around, ask me and I'll confirm before you book. And if your card says Blue Cross Blue Shield from another state, it's still worth asking — many out-of-area Blue plans work through my Regence contract, and I'll check your specific plan before you book anything.

Ways to make this more affordable

HSA and FSA funds

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

In-network insurance

I'm in-network with SelectHealth, Regence BlueCross BlueShield, Aetna, Cigna and Carelon Behavioral Health. If you're covered by one of those, you pay your plan's copay or coinsurance per session rather than the full fee. The details are in the insurance section above.

Out-of-network reimbursement

If your plan isn't one I'm in-network with, ask and I'll give you a superbill, which is an itemized receipt you can submit to your insurance yourself. If your plan has out-of-network benefits, a lot of them reimburse a meaningful share once your deductible is met. There's a privacy trade-off in going that route, and I've spelled it out further down this page.

Ecclesiastical or employer assistance

In Utah, a lot of LDS bishops and other faith leaders have funds to help members pay for counseling. If that's useful to you, mention it on the consult and I can bill the third party directly, with your written authorization. Some employers offer wellness stipends that reimburse counseling you've already paid for, which is worth a quick check with HR. (Traditional EAP visits usually have to stay inside the EAP's own provider network, so those generally can't be used here.) All of it is optional and entirely your call. Nothing goes to a bishop, an employer, or anyone else without your written authorization, and if you'd rather nobody knew you were in therapy at all, paying me 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 if you need to, because it's a completely normal conversation to have.

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

Which options are open to you depends on your plan. If you have SelectHealth, Regence BCBS, Aetna, Cigna or Carelon, you can use your in-network benefits. With any other plan, you can pay directly or use out-of-network benefits. Each has a trade-off, and none of them is the wrong answer. 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 · other plans

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
SelectHealth · Regence BCBS · Aetna · Cigna · Carelon

Use your in-network benefits

  • You pay your plan's copay or coinsurance per session, not the full fee
  • Claims are filed for you through Headway; nothing to submit yourself
  • A claim carries a diagnosis code, and it goes to your insurer
  • Your plan can set session limits or ask for reviews; I'll tell you if that happens
The trade-off, plainly. Using insurance, in-network or out, means a diagnosis code goes on the claim, and that code goes to your insurance company. For most people that's a non-issue. For someone in a sensitive profession, or anyone worried about future coverage, or anyone who just wants this kept private, it matters a great deal. If keeping your record clean is worth more to you than the money, pay me directly. I won't push you toward your benefits either way.

Not one of these plans? Find out what yours covers before you commit

If your plan isn't SelectHealth, Regence BCBS, Aetna, Cigna or Carelon, call the member-services number on the back of your insurance card and ask these four questions. It takes about ten minutes and it costs you 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 90837 (a standard therapy session of 53 minutes or more, which is what mine are)? And for 90791, the intake? Extended EMDR sessions bill under 90837 as well, so one answer covers both.
  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 whoever you spoke to, and bring those numbers to the consult if you like. We can do the math together.

The fine print

I bill SelectHealth, Regence BlueCross BlueShield, Aetna, Cigna and Carelon Behavioral Health directly. For every other plan I'm out-of-network, and payment is due at each session. If you pay privately, no diagnosis goes on your insurance record, no claims reviewer weighs in on when you're finished, and the work follows your goals rather than a coverage policy. That's the real trade-off between the two, and the choice is yours.
Good Faith Estimate. Under the No Surprises Act, if you're paying privately or choosing not to use your insurance, 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 me at least 24 hours' notice to change or cancel a session. Sessions missed or canceled with less notice are charged at the full rate, which is the same standard most Utah practices use. I keep a card securely on file and charge it 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. Tell me which insurance you have and I'll tell you whether I'm in-network with it. If you've already phoned your insurer, bring those numbers with you and we'll work out what this would cost you.

See if we're a fit
NextCommon questions, answered