I’m on the hook for $200 of that. I did some google searching and it appears that around $150 an hour is standard. I saw him for about 30 minutes and he wrote a prescription for me. Is that standard cost correct or am I incredibly naive about the costs of mental health care? I was expecting it to be a little pricey although more along the lines of $100. Needless to say, that is a prescription I will not be filling and I’ve canceled my follow up.
This was an in network doctor who is part of my primary care physician’s practice. My primary care doctor referred me to him because he did not feel comfortable writing a prescription for an anti depressant.
I feel as if I’d be better off being uninsured and using a sliding scale clinic (which is readily available in NYC). Paying the penalty this year is small potatoes compared to the cost of my insurance and medical bills. I will look into market place insurance in November. Or is it likely I’ll run into the same absurd costs doing that?
I appreciate any advice. I had excellent insurance in college and virtually everything was free, so this is all new to me.
Was part of the fee a “new patient” or “record creation” charge?
The figures you found are likely national averages. Charges can vary widely between providers that are down the street from one another. National averages for charges/costs aren’t necessarily a good indicator for a particular office.
$495 doesn’t sound outside the realm of possibility. Know too that, as a “new patient” the charge is higher than for an “established patient.” If you have never seen that particular doctor before, even if it’s a doctor in the same group or building as another doctor you have seen before recently, you’re still “new.” Your next visit to the same psychiatrist should have a lower fee - possibly 50-70% lower.
Welcome to the system.
Lovely.
The $495 was not broken down into new patient fees or anything like that. It’s all one charge for the office visit.
I would be very, very surprised that $150/hour is standard. Most of us pay about $150 for a 10 minute office visit at a general practitioner–and specialists are much higher paid. Are you confusing prices for psychiatrists vs psychologists?
FYI: I always ask how much it’s gonna cost and how much of that my insurance will cover, as well as whether or not uncovered amounts are my responsibility.
Maybe! I googled “average price per hour for psychiatrist” and that’s what it came up with, but as we all know, the internet is frequently wrong.
I pay around $60 for a visit to my primary care doctor. Only time I was charged more was when I got my flu shot.
That’s nuts. Pardon the term.
Even in DC is was closer to $150 rate for a psychiatrist, and just a co-pay out of my pocket.
You said NYC… was this at the top of the Empire State Building in Manhattan, and it all went to the dude’s rent? Sheesh.
kayaker- The receptionist at the practice told me that starting January 2014 (I saw this guy in February) mental health appointments were going to be billed as standard appointments, but she was obviously wrong. My fault for not asking a second person.
I phrased that wrong–I mean the standard retail price is $150 for the visit–insurance companies get significant discounts off retail–and patients only pay a portion of what the insurance company is charged.
We paid $400 for an initial meeting with our son’s psychiatrist. I think we spent 90 minutes with her. Follow-ups are shorter (15-30 minutes) and cost $150.
Perhaps you’re very ill. Or perhaps, that new Jaguar ain’t gonna pay for itself y’know.
The standard charge in these parts (Iowa) is $300-400 for the first visit to establish as a new patient (30-60 minutes, depending on the doc), and closer to $200 for follow up visits (which are usually around 10-15 minutes).
Of course, those charges are before the discounts given to various insurers. But around here, the discounts I’ve seen are quite small–on the order of $10-40 dollars off.
$400+ in NYC sounds like what I would expect for a first time visit.
If you want to avoid this in the future, shop around. First, I would call the doctor and ask what his charge is for a follow-up visit. Then, if you want to, call some other psychiatrists and ask what they charge. Although if you go to a new doc, you can expect to pay another high first-time visit charge.
Also, I’m not sure why you wouldn’t fill the prescription just because you didn’t like what the doctor charged.
If it’s in network then I wouldn’t pay much attention to the $495 billed to insurance. The doctor can bill insurance whatever, the final bill will be for the negotiated rate, and (unless I’m totally misunderstanding how these things work??) you’re not responsible for the difference if it’s in-network. I am guessing the $200 is the negotiated rate, coming from your deductible? (ETA: looking at other posts I see I could be wrong on that guess)
In your shoes I would probably fill the script and then find a PCP who prescribes anti-depressants, which it sounds like you would have been fine with in the first place.
To address the last sentence Q.N. Jones****- I don’t feel like it’s a wise financial decision to pay for medication that’s not critical when I have large bills to pay and won’t be following up to get a refill anyway.
Those are good suggestions regarding shopping around though. And thanks sugar and spice, that’s a good idea as well.
I’d call right now and say it’s going to be an issue for you and possibly your insurance, and that you weren’t quoted a price up front. The fact is that these days even hospital charges are negotiable, and you won’t be the first person to have called up and complained. Worst case is nothing happens.
I’m going to call and at see if I can at least pay it in two installments or something like that. I’m hoping they’ll be ok with that.
Straight Dope could open an online office thread using Skype for professional doctors visits and charge 1/3 less.
Worth thinking about lots of shrinks on these boards lol
My next question would be this: If the medication is not critical, why were you going to a psychiatrist?
(I realize the tone of these questions may sound judgmental, but I am an activist in the mental health community and work in healthcare management. If I can better understand your thinking surrounding this problem, I might have some partial solutions to offer.)
Because I function better with Zoloft, but I’m not going to kill myself without it. As a mental health activist do you think that those with diagnosed depression but who can get by without medication shouldn’t see a doctor?