Psychiatric Services and Rates for Children, Adolescents, and Adults:
- Initial Evaluation: typically 1.5-2 hours, the initial interview will cover your reasons for seeking psychiatric care; past psychiatric, medical, developmental, and family history; and previous therapies including psychotherapy, occupational therapy, vision therapy, etc. We’ll also go over diet, lifestyle/exercise, environmental factors, and psychological stressors. You’re encouraged to bring any records you may have, such as testing done on a child, lab work, or medical records, but these are not necessary to perform the initial evaluation. If the visit is for a child, I typically meet with the parent(s) first, while the child can either stay in the room or play in the outer waiting area (depending on their level of comfort being “talked about”. With an older child or teen, I usually meet with the parent and teen together, then meet with teen alone, then reconvene with the parent to make a plan.Because I do a longer initial visit, we cover more ground and can produce a more comprehensive treatment plan. If needed, I consult with school personnel, any other therapists involved, and any other relevant caregivers as part of the initial fee. Aside from any psychopharmalogical treatment planning, we also go over natural treatment options, including using pharmaceutical-grade vitamins, minerals, phyto-nutrients (plant-based), and other supplements. We’ll explore environmental adjustments you can make to optimize mental and nervous system health. Although my background includes using complex medication regimens for difficult cases, my approach now is to minimize or eliminate psychotropic medication use by implementing certain interventions I’ve found to be effective. Fee $500.
- Psychiatric follow-up visits : 45-60 minutes. Includes managing medications, individualizing supplement regimes, and addressing medical, social, environmental, and psychological issues. I no longer do “med checks”, because I find more time spent = better treatment. Fee $300.
- Medication Prior Authorization forms- $35 flat fee. If the pharmacy does not give you the prior auth form or fax it to me directly, you can download it yourself from your insurance’s website (once you log-on). Ask the pharmacy (nicely!) to get an auth form filled out as much as possible (eg with insurance info, address, etc) or fill it out yourself. I complete the medical justification portion and send it to the insurance company. If your pharmacist tells you “the doctor has to call the insurance”, you still need to either convince them to obtain a form, or get one yourself. (In other words, I don’t make these calls, because they usually take about 45 minutes, which will charged at the hourly rate!)
- Home or Office visits: Fees vary, call for pricing.
- Consultation with school personnel/IEP meetings: Charged at the hourly rate @ $300/hr., minimum $150.
- Forensic Evaluations: Fees vary depending on time required and type of evaluation. Call for fee schedule.
Miscellaneous:
This is what is called a fee-for-service practice. I do not accept insurance, but I do provide a superbill so you can bill your own insurance. Typically this means that if you have a PPO, they will cover about 50% of the “allowed fee” ( which may be different from the actual fee) after your deductible is met.
At this time, I am not taking any “sliding scale” patients.
I do try to spread out appointments when possible to keep it more affordable, and some people prefer to follow with their pediatrician or physician once they are stable, and see me only when adjustments need to be made.
FYI, typically patients are seen once a month or every other month initially, until stable, and then maintenance visits every 3-6 months.