Therapy FAQs: Fees, Insurance & Getting Started

Resources for yourself and/or someone you care about:

• Call or text 988 — the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 

  • Free, confidential, 24/7. In Philadelphia, 988 routes to the Philadelphia Crisis Line, which is staffed locally and can send a mobile team. 

  • Chat at 988lifeline.org.

  • You can call 988 about someone else. The Philadelphia Crisis Line explicitly accepts third-party callers. If someone else is in distress and you're the one who's scared, you call. Tell them plainly: “This person is threatening suicide. I'm their friend/partner/etc., I'm not a clinician, I need someone to talk to them or come to them."

• HOME to 741741 — the Crisis Text Line. 

  • Free, 24/7, text-based. 

  • Text PA to 741741.

• Call (215) 686-4420— Philadelphia's 24-hour Suicide Prevention and Crisis Intervention Service. 

  • A city call center, trained staff, any hour. They'll talk & connect with treatment

• Call (215) 685-6440 — the 24-Hour Mental Health Delegate Line

  • This is the line that processes emergency involuntary evaluation petitions ("302"). 

  • You, or anyone, can call it if you're worried about someone who refuses help.

• https://www.nami.org

• https://www.samhsa.gov

• https://www.findhelp.org

• www.apa.org/topics/crisis-hotline

• https://www.crisistextline.org

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The 302 Process; Emergency Involuntary Evaluation

In Pennsylvania, if someone is behaving dangerously toward themselves or others and refuses voluntary evaluation, any person can petition — including you, a family member, a doctor, or police. The petition goes through the county mental health delegate. Call 988, or (215) 685-6440, the 24-Hour Mental Health Delegate Line. Tell them you want to petition for an involuntary evaluation. They'll walk you through it. The city publishes a "302 Outreach Quick Guide" and petitioner instructions at healthymindsphilly.org.

When to consider this: if they have a specific plan, they have access to a means, and they are refusing help. If a threat is serious and concrete and they won't go anywhere voluntarily, this is the mechanism — and using it is not a betrayal. It's the legal system designed to carry exactly this weight so that a partner doesn't have to.

A "302" leads to an examination and, if warranted, a commitment of up to 120 hours. It is a high bar and exists for danger.

The first handful of therapy sessions are mainly about information gathering. You will be asked questions about your life, your goals for therapy, your reasons for starting therapy, learning about your previous experiences with therapy (if any), and more. If you have any additional questions about what to expect with your first session, reach out to us and let’s discuss.

We offer a free 15-minute consultation call where your initial questions and concerns can be addressed.

Fit matters more than almost anything else. You want a therapist you can connect with and who makes you feel comfortable and safe, because you will not say the hard things to someone you are managing yourself around. Look for someone who is genuinely expert in what you are bringing, who will tell you honestly what they think, and who is willing to say when something is not working. Credentials and approach matter, but the relationship is what makes therapy work.

Therapy sessions are private and confidential with the following exceptions:

• If you pose as a safety risk and/or a danger to yourself and/or someone else;

• If you discuss previous, current, or future plans regarding child abuse, elder abuse, or dependent adult abuse;

• If there is a mandated court order;

• If you sign a Release of Information form which gives your current and previous medical professionals permission to discuss your case with one another.

Sessions are 50-minutes each. We do offer double, 100-minute sessions as well.

Sessions are located at our Philadelphia or Newtown offices, or conducted virtually.

Candid Therapy and Counseling is self-pay and out of network, and does not bill insurance directly.

You will receive a superbill after each session that you can submit to your insurer for potential reimbursement.

A superbill is an itemized receipt that contains the information an insurance company needs to process a claim: the date of service, the type of service, the diagnostic code, and the provider's license details. You pay for the session in full, receive the superbill, and submit it to your insurer yourself. The plan then reimburses you directly at whatever rate your out-of-network benefits specify. It is worth confirming those benefits before you begin so there are no surprises.

Many plans reimburse out-of-network mental health services, including treatment for sexual concerns and relationship issues, though coverage varies.

Call the number on the back of your insurance card and ask about your out-of-network benefits for a licensed professional counselor, what percentage the plan covers, and what your deductible is.