Many residents of the United States who maintain their mental health and recovery with the support of psychotherapy and counseling services face the risk of interruption of these vital services, potentially placing them at elevated risk of admission to a higher level of care.  If their link to outpatient services is interrupted in the event of a need for social distancing or self-quarantines during a pandemic. 

The "Telehealth" treatment modality is evidence-based and is commonly covered by some health insurance plans (CIGNA & OPTUM/UHC) for the treatment of physical conditions.  During this time of increased risk and uncertainty, assuring that patients in need of outpatient care are able to access treatment for mental health conditions and substance use disorders even when movement may be restricted.

Currently, mental health providers who are in-network with managed care organizations are being told that telehealth is not reimbursable for mental health counseling, even when using a HIPAA compliant platform and with the standard of care generally practiced in medicine for physical health conditions.

Additionally, providers may be required to use 3rd party vendors to treat their clients. This is a major hindrance to telemental health care. Often times, these 3rd party vendors take months to get paneled with and sometimes they are closed to new providers completely. This is a major barrier to mental health care for people who want to use their health insurance. 

Please lift these restrictions and allow us to see our client's via HIPAA compliant video platforms AND bill their insurances without the threat of no reimbursement.