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F.A.Q.
About the Guild & Insurance  About Psychotherapy
About the Guild & Insurance

What is the Connecticut Psychotherapists’ Guild?
Why is the Guild concerned about the impact of insurance companies on psychotherapy?
How might an insurance company violate my privacy?
How might an insurance company influence my treatment?
How can an insurance company know what is best for me?
Doesn’t my insurance company screen therapists so I know I’m getting the best-qualified person?
What alternative is the Guild offering?
Do I have to choose between getting insurance coverage and seeing a Guild therapist?
How would choosing a Guild psychotherapist affect my costs?

What is the Connecticut Psychotherapists’ Guild?
We are independent psychotherapists who are concerned about the impact of insurance companies on psychotherapy.  We offer consumers information about our concerns—information not often disclosed by insurance companies.  We also offer alternatives.  We strongly believe that consumers have a right to all the information about their health care and that informed consumers make intelligent choices.
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Why is the Guild concerned about the impact of insurance companies on psychotherapy?
Insurance companies promise to deliver quality mental health care at  reduced cost to you.  However, there are hidden, non-financial costs that they do not disclose.  You may lose your privacy, your right to choose your own therapist, and control over the type, length and goals of your therapy.

Many insurance companies require therapists to disclose personal information about you, and you are usually required to sign a blanket “release of information” when claiming benefits.  Company policy determines what treatment is eligible for reimbursement.  The less treatment they authorize, the lower their costs, and the higher their profits.
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How might an insurance company violate my privacy?
An insurance company may violate your privacy in the following ways:

  • Your therapist may be required to submit detailed personal reports about you to the company.  These may be read by clerical workers, other office staff, and clinical reviewers hired by the company.  You have only limited control over who sees these records, how many people see them, how they are handled, or how securely they are stored. 
  • Once your records are sent to the insurance company, they may become part of a permanent data bank.  This information can then be made available to other parties.  This may affect your future employment or acceptance for health, life or disability insurance.

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How might an insurance company influence my treatment?
What an insurance company pays is primarily a business decision—more expensive policies pay for more; the cheapest policies pay for less. The company you work for has negotiated the contract with the insurance company. Neither has any obligation to consider what you need.
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How can an insurance company know what is best for me?
Insurance companies serve your interests when they reduce fraud and unnecessary treatment.  However, problems develop when profits become so important that the quality of care suffers and individual cases take a back seat to company policies.

Insurance companies can cut costs and increase profits by authorizing very brief treatment or medication for as many problems as possible.  There is nothing wrong with brief treatment or with medication.  However, they are not appropriate for all clients and for all kinds of problems.

We in the Guild feel strongly that you and your therapist alone should work together to set the treatment goals and length of your therapy.  Your insurance policy may not offer you as many options.
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Doesn’t my insurance company screen therapists so I know I’m getting the best-qualified person?
Most insurance companies screen therapists by checking that they’re licensed and carry malpractice insurance.  (Guild therapists are screened in the same way.)  Some companies drop therapists from their provider lists if the therapists advocate too strongly for their clients or see them for “too many” sessions.

“Preferred providers,” then, are usually those licensed professionals who are willing to follow insurance company policy.
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What alternative is the Guild offering?
We are offering private psychotherapy in which you and your therapist together make all decisions about your treatment, including whether to use your insurance and how long treatment lasts.  Guild members are committed to offering quality psychotherapy at moderate fees and to honoring the tradition of psychotherapy as a private activity.
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Do I have to choose between getting insurance coverage and seeing a Guild therapist?
Not necessarily.  Many Guild therapists will work with you to obtain whatever coverage is available without allowing company policy to dictate the conduct of therapy.  Some companies are less intrusive than others.  In some cases, clients use their insurance at the onset and then change over to self-pay if the company demands too much information, exerts too much influence on treatment, or refuses to pay for further sessions.
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How would choosing a Guild psychotherapist affect my costs?
Independent psychotherapy in most cases costs you more per session than therapy provided by therapists on the insurance company's panel.  However, insurance companies only pay for what they deem “medically necessary,” leaving clients to pay for any additional sessions out of their own pockets.  Therefore, seeing a Guild therapist may cost little more than a course of therapy begun under an insurance plan.  Most Guild therapists have sliding scales and take into account a client’s ability to pay.

One factor that contributes to high therapy fees is the increased amount of time therapists must spend dealing with insurance companies. 

If you choose a Guild psychotherapist, pay at the time of service, and do not require further paperwork or administration, your therapist will reduce her/his usual fee by at least 20%.

As an informed consumer, it is up to you to weigh the costs and benefits—financial and otherwise—for using your insurance or electing to bypass it.
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