Why I No Longer Work With Insurance Companies

I have chosen to no longer contract with insurance companies because their business models are fundamentally misaligned with ethical, client-centered mental health care. Insurance companies operate with minimal oversight while wielding significant control over treatment decisions, often dictating what care is “allowed” based on cost rather than clinical need. In doing so, they routinely undermine best practices, interfere with the therapeutic relationship, and place financial incentives above the wellbeing of the public and the professionals who serve them.

These systems have real consequences for clients. Care is frequently delayed, limited, or disrupted by arbitrary requirements, shifting policies, and opaque decision-making processes that create confusion and distress during already vulnerable periods. Clients are also required to share highly personal information with third-party entities that have no therapeutic role, raising serious concerns about privacy, consent, and dignity. Over time, these practices contribute to reduced access to experienced providers, shorter and less effective treatment, and a mental health system that prioritizes administrative compliance over meaningful care.

While insurance companies also engage in aggressive and often questionable audit and recoupment practices that punish providers retroactively and exert pressure on clinical judgment, the broader harm extends beyond clinicians. These dynamics push qualified providers out of insurance networks, shrink the availability of care, and ultimately leave clients with fewer options and less continuity. By practicing outside of insurance systems, I am able to provide care that is transparent, ethical, and guided solely by what is clinically appropriate and in the best interest of the client.