Insurance and Fees

Insurance

Dr. Steven Hartman accepts some private insurance, but can only submit claims for services deemed medically necessary. If Dr. Hartman is a provider in your network and services are deemed medically necessary, the patient is responsible only for the session co-pay at the time of each session. Your authorization is required in order for Dr. Hartman to submit insurance claims in accordance with HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act).

How Insurance Works

Most insurance companies allow 10 pass-through visits per calendar year (January– December). Beyond 10 sessions, Dr. Hartman is required to substantiate medical necessity for ongoing insurance reimbursement. When Dr. Hartman submits a claim, he is required to identify a diagnosis (e.g., anxiety disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, major depressive disorder) in order for the claim to be processed. It's important to understand that despite Dr. Hartman's maintenance of confidential records, some personal patient information shared with the insurance company is no longer under his direct supervision — this also means there is an official record of treatment: how many sessions, diagnosis, and progress reporting. In some rare cases, insurance companies request treatment plans and session notes to evaluate medical necessity. Patients or guardians who elect to forgo using insurance have less exposure to personal health disclosures, since those records remain under Dr. Hartman's control. Each individual patient (or guardian of a patient) must decide whether to utilize insurance.

What Insurance Does Not Cover

Insurance does not cover coordination of treatment planning with school districts, other medical professionals, or patient contact by email/text outside of the therapeutic session. Dr. Hartman will not charge for reasonable contact lasting 5–10 minutes. However, for report writing, consultation, and other needs, Dr. Hartman will charge at the private-pay rates below. Dr. Hartman will always notify you in advance if private-pay reimbursement is expected for a particular service.

Private Pay

Sometimes referred to as out-of-pocket, private-pay patients pay for sessions directly to Dr. Hartman at an agreed-upon fee arrangement.

Private-pay patients can be assured that Dr. Hartman will maintain confidential records and will not divulge any information to other individuals or entities without express written consent, except as stipulated in the Consent to Treatment Contract each patient signs prior to treatment.

Psychological Assessment

Dr. Hartman charges $150 per hour for the administration, interpretation, and report writing of psychological assessments. Depending on the breadth of the evaluation, assessments may require 5–20 hours to complete. Dr. Hartman will apprise the patient or guardian of the approximate time frame and develop a contract for payment (typically half prior to the assessment, with the balance due upon completion). Dr. Hartman does not charge for the informing session, in which results of the evaluation are explained in detail — this typically takes 1–2 hours.