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Nowadays, cost containment priorities demand that psychotherapy be inexpensive, brief, symptom relieving and cost effective. Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO's) and managed health care organizations that regulate and limit the practice of health care in a competitive market may regulate the quality and type of mental health care treatment available to you. Many health insurance companies that provide mental health benefits, contract with a provider group that may also serve as a managed health care organization to allocate, monitor and regulate mental health care treatment and consequently limit your insurance benefits. What this means is that a managed health care organization can control and limit the amount and kind of therapy treatment seemingly available to you in your health benefits plan. It is important to understand that while you may be going to a competent therapist, your insurance company(as regulated through managed health care) may not cover the style and length of treatment that you or your therapist feel is warranted. Unfortunately, you may be forced to make a decision about whether you and your therapist are willing to continue ongoing treatment even when your insurance benefits are discontinued. Or in other instances, you may have lesser benefits by choosing to see a provider outside your plan's provider network. Consequently, you may need to to ask your therapist how they would handle the therapy fees, should you find that your treatment is not now or may no longer be covered by your insurance plan. |
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