Understanding Therapy Costs and Insurance coverage
Therapy is an investment in your mental and emotional well-being. At the Seattle Counseling Center, our fees reflect the expertise and individualized support you’ll receive in each session.
How do therapy fees work?
Counselors charge a “per session” fee for every clinical hour. Some clients pay this fee directly - this is called private pay. Other clients ask us to charge their insurance company for the fees.
At the Seattle Counseling Center, we have two fees. Licensed Mental Health Counselors (LMHC) charge $165/session and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associates (LMHCA/P) charge $145/session.
Therapists at the Seattle Counseling Center are in-network with the following insurance companies:
Premera
Regence
First Choice
Blue Cross/Blue Shield
Kaiser PPO
For all private pay clients, we provide a monthly superbill.
I don’t understand what all these terms mean. Can you help?
Using insurance for therapy can be confusing. Here are the key terms to help untangle the information:
In-Network vs. Out-of-Network:
In-Network means we have an agreement with your insurance company to accept their negotiated rates. You usually pay only your deductible or co-pay.
Out-of-Network means we do not have a direct agreement with your insurance. You pay the session fee upfront, and your insurance may reimburse you partially. We provide superbills to simplify this process.
Deductible: The amount you pay for healthcare services before your insurance starts covering costs.
Co-Pay: A fixed amount you pay per session.
Co-Insurance: A percentage of the session fee you are responsible for after meeting your deductible.
Contracted Rate: The fee that your therapist has agreed upon with your insurance company. This is often lower than the therapist’s standard session fee, and your insurance plan may cover part of this amount according to your benefits.
Superbill: A detailed receipt that you submit to your insurance company for reimbursement if you are out-of-network.
How do they work together?
This is where it gets tricky. Every plan has a different deductible, co-pay, co-insurance, contracted rate, and mental health coverage. Some plans have all, some plans only have a few of these pieces.
1. Deductible
Your deductible is the amount you need to pay out of pocket each year before your insurance starts covering services.
Example: If your deductible is $1,500, you’ll pay the full contracted rate for therapy until you’ve spent $1,500 on covered medical expenses that year.
After meeting your deductible, your insurance begins to pay for a portion of your therapy sessions.
2. Copay
Some plans require a fixed copay — a set dollar amount (for example, $20 or $40 per session) — each time you attend therapy.
Copays are due at the time of your session.
If your plan includes both a deductible and a copay, the copay usually applies after you’ve met your deductible.
3. Coinsurance
Instead of a flat copay, some plans use coinsurance, which means you pay a percentage of the session fee and insurance pays the rest.
Example: If your plan has 20% coinsurance, you pay 20% of the contracted rate and insurance pays 80%.
4. Contracted Rate (or “Allowed Amount”)
This is the amount your therapist has agreed upon with your insurance company for each session.
Even if your therapist’s full fee is higher, you’ll only be billed up to the contracted rate when using insurance.
Your deductible, copay, or coinsurance is calculated based on this contracted rate.
5. Mental Health Coverage Before the Deductible
Some plans cover mental health services before you’ve met your deductible.
This means you might pay only a copay right away rather than the full contracted rate.
The only way to know for sure is to check your specific plan — benefits vary widely, even within the same insurance company.
How do I know what my coverage is?
It’s important you understand your coverage before beginning a counseling relationship. Here’s how to determine your coverage for in-network or out-of-network services.
Locate your insurance card and find your plan name and member ID.
Call your insurance company with the following questions:
What is my deductible? How much do I have remaining before I’ve met my deductible?
What is my co-pay or co-insurance for therapy?
How many sessions are covered per year?
Do I need a referral or prior authorization?
Is my therapist in network?
Do I have coverage for out-of-network providers?
Do you cover telehealth sessions?
Seattle Counseling Center can offer a courtesy benefit check but cannot guarantee the accuracy of a benefit check. Clients are responsible for payment of therapy services, regardless of what their insurance covers. We encourage clients to verify their insurance benefits and understand their coverage before scheduling sessions. Our office is happy to provide superbills and assist with insurance questions, but clients are responsible for knowing the details of their plan.
If we're not in-network with your insurance plan, you may still be able to use your out-of-network mental health benefits.
Here's how the process works:
You pay Seattle Counseling Center directly at the time of your appointment.
We provide you with a monthly superbill that includes the information your insurance company needs to process an out-of-network claim.
You submit the superbill to your insurance company.
If your plan includes out-of-network benefits, your insurance company may reimburse you directly for a portion of your therapy costs.
Because every insurance plan is different, we recommend contacting your insurance company before your first appointment and asking:
Do I have out-of-network benefits for outpatient mental health therapy?
Is there an out-of-network deductible?
What percentage of my therapy costs will be reimbursed after my deductible is met?
How do I submit a superbill for reimbursement?
Please note that reimbursement is determined entirely by your insurance company. While we're happy to provide the documentation you need, we cannot guarantee reimbursement or estimate how much your insurance will pay.
You aren’t in-network with my insurance company, but I’m still curious about therapy. What can I expect?
This is a lot. How much will I have to pay?
We know it can be complicated. Therapy is probably more affordable than you think; a typical client using their in-network insurance benefits is spending between $15-$40 per session.
I want to get started but I’m still confused. Can you help?
Absolutely! Either send us an email at office@seattlecounselingcenter.org or schedule a free, 20 minute consultation and we’ll happily help understand your financial responsibility.