New patients
Starting here
Everything you need to know before the first appointment: how to get scheduled, what it costs, what to bring, and how the office runs.
[Currently accepting new patients]
Scheduling
How to get an appointment
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Call or send the form
Reach the office at [(618) 555-0142] or use the contact form. Tell us whether you are looking for therapy, medication management, or both.
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We check your insurance
Have your card handy. We verify your behavioral health benefits, confirm the plan covers telehealth, and tell you what your visits will cost before you commit to an appointment.
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Paperwork ahead of time
We send intake forms to complete online. Finishing them early means the first appointment is spent talking rather than working through a form together on camera.
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First appointment
Open the video link a few minutes early to check your camera and microphone. Have your ID, your insurance card, and a list of your medications within reach.
Paying for care
Insurance and fees
Plans we accept
- [Plan name]
- [Plan name]
- [Plan name]
- [Plan name]
Coverage varies plan to plan even within the same insurer. We verify your specific benefits before your first appointment, but the most reliable answer comes from calling the behavioral health number on the back of your card and asking about outpatient mental health coverage, your deductible, and your copay.
Self-pay rates
- Therapy intake
- [$000]
- Therapy session (50 min)
- [$000]
- Psychiatric evaluation
- [$000]
- Medication follow-up
- [$000]
Good faith estimate
If you are uninsured or choosing not to use insurance, federal law entitles you to a good faith estimate of what your care will cost. Ask the office and we will put it in writing before you are scheduled.
House rules
Office policies
- Cancellations
- [24 hours’] notice is required to cancel or reschedule. Later than that, or a missed appointment, is billed at [$000]. Insurance does not cover missed visits.
- Prescription refills
- Request refills through the pharmacy, not by voicemail. Allow [two business days]. Refills are written to last until your next scheduled appointment, so keeping that appointment is how you stay covered.
- Between appointments
- Messages left during office hours are returned the same or next business day. This office does not provide crisis or after-hours coverage — use 988 or 911 if you need help immediately.
- Records requests
- Submit a signed release to the office. Records are released within the timeframe Illinois law requires.
- Forms and letters
- Disability paperwork, FMLA forms, and letters take time to complete accurately. Ask early, and expect a fee for anything beyond routine documentation.
First appointment
What to have ready
- A private space where you will not be overheard for the full hour
- A device with a working camera and microphone, and a steady connection
- Photo ID
- Insurance card, and a secondary card if you have one
- A list of every medication and supplement you take, with doses
- Names of other providers involved in your care
- Records from previous treatment, if you have them and want us to have them
- Your pharmacy’s name and location