Fees And Policies For Psychotherapy And Counseling
Lynn Grodzki, LCSW-C, MCC
Individual psychotherapy/counseling
As of 1/1/23: $215 for a 50-minute psychotherapy session in-person, weekly or every-other-week, as determined at initial session. I do not participate directly with any insurance company and am not a provider for any insurance plan, including Medicare.
Policies:
Fees are payable in full at the time of the session by credit card. You will get a statement of charges. Lynn does not participate directly with any insurance companies, but as she is a licensed clinical social worker, you may find your sessions reimbursable.
Lynn Grodzki is a senior, expert psychotherapist. Her goal is to offer the best counseling and psychotherapy she can. For this reason, she does not participate directly with insurance, or managed care. She does not accept any fees from or bill services directly to Medicare. Her decision to not participate with insurance allows her to keep confidentiality and autonomy with clients at a premium. Her clients value the independent relationship that this provides. It allows Lynn and her clients to determine the treatment plan (instead of the insurance company).
But most insurance plans will still reimburse you for a portion of your counseling or therapy fees (for an out of plan provider). Lynn will give you a monthly statement with a diagnosis and treatment code for these purposes if desired. Monthly statements are sent via email, as a pdf attachment.
Psychotherapy sessions are scheduled on an ongoing weekly or bi-monthly basis and last 45-50 minutes. They are conducted by phone or on zoom. Payment is due at the time of the session by credit card. A statement is issued at the first of each month for the previous month’s payments for insurance or tax purposes. There is no direct billing with any insurance plan. The statement will include a diagnosis and insurance code.
All regularly scheduled sessions are your financial responsibility. Lynn needs 48 hrs. of notice during business hours in order to not charge you for your session. If you know that you must miss a session, she will make reasonable efforts to reschedule sessions when cancelled in a timely manner. Without this amount of notice, you will be charged for the missed session, regardless of the reasons for the cancellation, unless you can be rescheduled during the same calendar week.
Either the client or the therapist may end the therapy relationship. Lynn would like to offer emotional support to all the phases of your work in therapy, including when you decide to leave therapy so that you can start well and end well with her. She can support your decision to leave best if you give several weeks notice prior to actually leaving. The notice allows you to leave well, having an experience of positive completion and consolidating all your learning.
If, at any time, you feel that your needs are not being met or you are not getting what you want out of our sessions, please tell Lynn in a session so she can discuss your needs and adjust your therapy treatment plan, or help you to end the therapy as quickly and well as possible, if that is your choice.
As a licensed and certified clinical social worker and psychotherapist, Lynn Grodzki follows the ethical guidelines of the Social Work Board of Maryland and the National Association of Social Workers. She protects the confidentiality of the communications with her clients. She will only release information about her sessions and treatment plan to others with your written permission, or if she is required to do so by a court order.
There are some situations in which she is legally obligated to breach your confidentiality in order to protect others from harm, including (1) if she has information that indicates that a child or elderly or disabled person is being abused she must report that to the appropriate state agency and (2) if a client is an imminent risk to him/herself or makes threats of imminent violence against another person, she is required to take protective actions. These situations rarely occur, but if such a situation does occur, Lynn will make every effort to discuss it with you before taking any action.
A decision to begin psychotherapy with Lynn Grodzki signals agreement with these fees and policies.
Medicare Opt Out Policy:
Lynn Grodzki does not participate with Medicare. She has an opt-out policy, as shown below.
- Client agrees to give up all Medicare coverage and payment for services furnished by the clinical social worker for two years and will not bill Medicare nor ask the clinical social worker to bill Medicare.
- Client is liable for charges of the clinical social worker without any limits that would otherwise be imposed by Medicare.
- Client acknowledges that Medigap will not make payment for services and other supplementary insurers may not pay either. Acknowledges that he has the right to receive services from a clinical social worker or other practitioner for whom Medicare coverage and payment would be available.
- Client will receive a copy of the private contract that states the effective and expiration dates of the opt-out period.
- The contract will be retained by the clinical social worker and made available to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) upon request.
- The clinical social worker will not submit any claims to Medicare during the two year period beginning on the date the affidavit is signed. The clinical social worker will not receive any Medicare payment for any services provided to Medicare beneficiaries.
Coaching Policies:
Life/ Career / Executive Coaching sessions are scheduled on an ongoing bi-monthly basis and last 45 minutes. Since these sessions constitute coaching, and are not psychotherapy, they are designed as a short-term program and may be conducted in person, by phone, or by Skype. Payment is due at the time of the session by check or credit card. A statement is issued at the first of each month for the previous month’s payments for tax purposes. Coaching is not covered by insurance.
All regularly scheduled sessions are your financial responsibility. Lynn needs 48 hrs. of notice during business hours in order to not charge you for your session. If you know that you must miss a session, Lynn will make reasonable efforts to reschedule sessions when cancelled in a timely manner. While Lynn knows that at times 48 hrs. advance notice is not possible, without this amount of notice you will be charged for the missed session, regardless of the reasons for the cancellation.
Either the client or the coach may end the coaching relationship. If, at any time, you feel that your needs are not being met or you are not getting what you want out of our sessions, please tell Lynn so together you can discuss your needs and adjust your coaching plan.
As a licensed therapist and a certified coach, Lynn protects the confidentiality of the communications with my clients. Lynn follows the ethics guidelines of the International Coaching Federation, which has certified her as a Master Certified Coach. She will only release information about your work to others with your written permission, or if she is required to do so by a court order. Given that Lynn is also a LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker), there are some situations in which she is legally obligated by holding that license to breach your confidentiality in order to protect others from harm, including (1) if she has information that indicates that a child or elderly or disabled person is being abused, she must report that to the appropriate state agency and (2) if a client is an imminent risk to him/herself or makes threats of imminent violence against another person, she is required to take protective actions. These situations rarely occur, but if such a situation does occur, she will make every effort to discuss it with you before taking any action.
Coaching versus Psychotherapy
There are some similarities between coaching and psychotherapy, but Lynn does not combine psychotherapy with coaching. She sees these as separate roles and separate conversations. Although both coaching and psychotherapy use knowledge of human behavior, motivation, behavioral change, and interactive counseling techniques, there are major differences in the goals, focus, and level of professional responsibility. In some situations, Lynn may recommend that you enter psychotherapy (with another psychotherapist or counselor) as a condition of continuing coaching.
Professional Boundaries
Coaching is a professional relationship and Lynn will maintain professional boundaries during and after your work together. Considerable experience shows that when boundaries blur, the hard-won benefits gained from the coaching relationship are endangered.
Hold Harmless
In her role as a Life/Career and Executive Coach, Lynn may make suggestions or offer resources for her clients. But each client assumes sole responsibility to decide what actions to take regarding his/her life choices and career /development path. Given this coaching contract, all clients agree to hold Lynn harmless for the state of their businesses or careers, as well as taking total responsibility for their own results apart from coaching. Clients will indemnify and hold Lynn Grodzki harmless from any legal claims, actions, or judgments. See more policies in the section of Informed Consent.
A decision to begin Life/Career Coaching or Executive Coaching with Lynn Grodzki signals agreement with these policies and fees.
To set up an appointment, email info@counselingsilverspring.com.