My hourly fee is $150. My fee for the initial interview is $185. The fee for sessions that last more than 60 minutes is $175. These fees are in line with other providers in our area who have similar training and experience. Payment schedules for other professional services (such as testing) will be agreed to when they are requested. My patients agree to pay for each session at the time it is held, unless we have made other arrangements, or they are covered by specific insurance (see below). I accept cash, checks, Visa, MasterCard, and Discover.

I am happy to provide you a form that your insurance company calls a “Superbill” that you can send to your insurance company for possible reimbursement. Therapy is a commitment. You’ll need to be sure that you can prioritize your mental health treatment at this time.

At this time, I accept Anthem/Blue Cross-Blue Shield insurance (not Anthem HIP), Aetna and Medicare. I do not participate in any other Managed Care plans. My services for others are “self-pay”. That means for people with insurance other than Anthem, Aetna and Medicare, I am an “out-of-network” provider.

There are good reasons why I limit my connections to insurance. Here are two: 1) My goal is your well-being and your mental health care, delivered as my training and experience direct me. Being beholden to a Managed Care plan (aka “insurance”) for my fees would create the potential for conflict of interest. When I’m thinking about your needs and your treatment, I don’t want to be thinking about Managed Care – just you. 2) I can provide you privacy and confidentiality. As a private practitioner, I have full and direct control over what information goes into your record and direct control over the security of that information. No one sees your records unless you direct me to share them (such as with your physician).

So, while I only accept Anthem, Aetna and Medicare insurance, we can still navigate this. I am happy to provide you a form that you can send to your insurance company for reimbursement. I encourage you to call the telephone number on the back of your insurance card to find out what your “out-of-network” benefits are for psychological services (sometimes called “Behavioral” services). We certainly don’t want any financial surprises. Ask them where to send what’s called a “Superbill” (that’s the form I’ll provide you). I’ll give you everything you need for that; you just need the address.

Since full payment is required at the time of service, you’ll need to know that you can prioritize your treatment at this time.

At this time, most sessions with me are conducted In-Person, but I do offer “teletherapy,” that is, using video communication technology. You may be familiar with Zoom or similar technology. I happen to use Microsoft Teams for that. Microsoft Teams is HIPAA-compliant and technologically solid. On the day of our session, I will send you an email with a link to the meeting. All you have to do is click on the “Join…” link. There is nothing to download, nothing to install.

If we are meeting face-to-face, face masks are optional (according to our mutual best judgement) and available to you as needed.

The initial session, the “consultation” session, last 60-90 minutes. Sessions after that are 50 minutes. Meeting your treatment goals usually requires weekly meetings. Sometimes specific situations demand more frequent sessions and longer sessions in the short term. The total number of sessions depends on your individual needs and your treatment goals. Psychotherapy is typically not a brief process that can be accomplished in 2-3 sessions. Psychotherapy typically involves a large commitment of time, money, and energy.

Since I do not participate in “Managed Care” plans, I will not be sharing your information with third parties. If it would be helpful for your physician and I to coordinate our treatment of you, I will discuss it with you and get your explicit permission.

You will be provided a written summary of exceptions to confidentiality that should prove helpful in informing you about potential problems. That summary is provided here in this FAQ page. Still it is important that we discuss any questions or concerns that you may have now or in the future. The laws governing confidentiality can be quite complex, and I am not an attorney. In situations where specific advice is required, formal legal advice may be needed.

• I may occasionally find it helpful to consult other health and mental health professionals about a case. During a consultation, I make every effort to avoid revealing the identity of my patient. The other professionals are also legally bound to keep the information confidential. If you don’t object, I will not tell you about these consultations unless I feel that it is important to our work together. I will note all consultations in your Clinical Record (which is called “PHI” in my Notice of Psychologist’s Policies and Practices to Protect the Privacy of Your Health Information).

• I also have a contract with TherapyNotes, as my electronic medical records (EMR) provider, as well as with other providers as needed. As required by HIPAA, I have a formal business associate contract with these businesses, in which they promise to maintain the confidentiality of this data except as specifically allowed in the contract or otherwise required by law. If you wish, I can provide you with the names of these organizations and/or a blank copy of this contract.

• Disclosures required by health insurers or to collect overdue fees are discussed elsewhere in this Agreement.

• If you are involved in a court proceeding and a request is made for information concerning the professional services I provided to you, such information is protected by the psychologist-patient privilege law. I cannot provide any information without your (or your legal representative’s) written authorization, or a court order. If you are involved in or contemplating litigation, you should consult with your attorney to determine whether a court would be likely to order me to disclose information.

• If a government agency is requesting the information for health oversight activities, I may be required to provide it for them.

• I may be required to provide information to a coroner or medical examiner, in the performance of that individual’s duties.

• If a patient files a complaint or lawsuit against me, I may disclose relevant information regarding that patient in order to defend myself.

There are some situations in which I am legally obligated to take actions, which I believe are necessary to attempt to protect others from harm and I may have to reveal some information about a patient’s treatment. These situations are unusual in my practice.

• If I have reason to believe that a child is a victim of child abuse or neglect, the law requires that I file a report with the appropriate government agency, usually the local child protection service. Once such a report is filed, I may be required to provide additional information.

• If I have reason to believe that someone is an endangered adult, the law requires that I file a report with the appropriate government agency, usually the adult protective services unit. Once such a report is filed, I may be required to provide additional information.

• If a patient communicates an actual threat of physical violence against an identifiable victim, or evidences conduct or makes statements indicating imminent danger that the patient will use physical violence or other means to cause serious personal injury to others, I may be required to disclose information in order to take protective actions. These actions may include notifying the potential victim, contacting the police, or seeking hospitalization for the patient.

• If a patient communicates an imminent threat of serious physical harm to him/herself, I may be required to disclose information in order to take protective actions. These actions may include initiating hospitalization or contacting family members or others who can assist in providing protection.

If such a situation arises, I will make every effort to fully discuss it with you before taking any action and I will limit my disclosure to what is necessary.

While this written summary of exceptions to confidentiality should prove helpful in informing you about potential problems, it is important that we discuss any questions or concerns that you may have now or in the future. The laws governing confidentiality can be quite complex, and I am not an attorney. In situations where specific advice is required, formal legal advice may be needed.

You may also contact me by email at michael.jones@drmichaeljonespsych.com. Please note that this is not secure email, so I advise against including personal information. Also, NEVER use email to contact me in an emergency.

If you are unable to reach me and feel that you can’t wait for me to return your call, contact your family physician, call or go to the nearest emergency room and ask for the psychologist or psychiatrist on call. There is also the National Crisis Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) and you can call 9-1-1.

If I will be unavailable for an extended time, I will provide you with the name of a colleague to contact, if necessary.

You can make an appointment simply by calling me at (317) 778-8525. Due to my work schedule, I am often not immediately available by telephone. While I am usually in my office between 1 PM and 6 PM, I probably will not answer the phone when I am with a patient. When I am unavailable, my telephone is answered by voice mail that I monitor frequently. I will make every effort to return your call on the same day you make it, with the exception of weekends and holidays. If you leave a voice mail message be sure to include your telephone number. If you are difficult to reach, please inform me of some times when you will be available.

If you are already a patient, you have access to the Patient Portal. You can use the Patient Portal to view available appointment times and request an appointment at a specific date/time.

Life happens. Unforeseen situations arise and sometimes we get ill. Since your therapy hour has been set aside for you, please call at least 24 hours before your scheduled time if you need to cancel. If it is possible, I will try to find another time to reschedule the appointment. With less than 24 hours’ notice of your cancellation, you will be expected to pay for your therapy hour. (It is important to note that insurance companies do not provide reimbursement for cancelled sessions.)

If you are already a patient, you have access to the Patient Portal. You can use the Patient Portal to cancel an appointment. You can use the Patient Portal to view available appointment times and send a reschedule request for an appointment at a specific date/time.

Other services include report writing, telephone conversations lasting longer than 5 minutes, consulting with other professionals with your permission, preparation of records or treatment summaries, and the time spent performing any other service you may request of me. If you become involved in legal proceedings that require my participation, you will be expected to pay for all of my professional time, including preparation and transportation costs, even if I am called to testify by another party. Because of the difficulty of legal involvement, I charge $300 per hour for preparation and attendance at any legal proceeding.

I provide limited psychological testing – essentially therapeutic assessment and limited pre-surgical testing. I provide psychological testing using a variety of established tests. Psychological assessment can be a helpful addition to the psychotherapy process, particularly highlighting important areas for your personal growth or identifying issues that are blocking you from your goals. Psychological assessment is also used to identify thought disorders and personality disorders, clarify diagnoses, assess limits of ability and capacity, and guide treatment.

Testing is often a lengthy process and may require more than one visit by you for test administration. Following the testing administration, tests are scored and interpreted, then a report is written. In most cases we will sit down and go over the results together.

Yes and No, depending on the medical/surgical procedure. I use a detailed clinical interview and an empirically-supported battery of psychological tests and questionnaires to assess a surgery candidate’s psychological readiness for his or her procedure. The entire process lasts from 3-6 hours (depending on the surgery procedure) and a report is provided to your physician/surgeon. As an example, pre-surgery screening for Spinal Cord Stimulator Implant and Intrathecal Drug Pump Implants lasts about 4 hours with a flat rate.

Pre-Surgery Psychological Screening (PPS) is a process of assessing various aspects of a surgery candidate’s psychological well-being prior to the surgery procedure to promote the most successful outcome for the surgery. PPS is recommended prior to several types of surgery procedures, including those intended to relieve pain. Through PPS, various aspects of a person’s experience, capacities and capabilities become better understood. PPS is considered an essential element of “best practices” by many physicians and surgeons for a variety of procedures and by many third-party payors (insurance companies, Medicare, Medicaid, etc.). Often third-party payors will insist that PPS be performed before they approve certain procedures in order to be prudent and cost-effective for the patient and the insurer.

I perform Pre-Surgery Psychological Screening prior to procedures such as Spinal Cord Stimulator Implant and Intrathecal Drug Pump Implants. The PPS process for those procedures consists of a clinical interview and administration of questionnaires and, if your physician thinks it’s appropriate, an in-person review of your screening results.