Why Don’t We Take Insurance?

The primary reason we do not accept insurance aligns with why you may have sought our services: the traditional, insurance-based mental healthcare model often emphasizes cost-saving measures over comprehensive, accurate diagnoses and meaningful outcomes. This system frequently fails to provide patients with the clarity and support they deserve. However, we will provide you with a detailed receipt so you can independently pursue reimbursement options if you wish.

Challenges in the Insurance-Based Model

• Primary Care Limitations: Many individuals first turn to their primary care providers for mental health concerns. However, research shows that up to 65.9% of major depressive disorder cases and over 90% of bipolar and panic disorders are misdiagnosed in primary care settings, where mental health training is limited, and assessments rely on basic tools like quick screeners (Vermani et al., 2011). This leads to inadequate treatment and prolonged suffering for many patients.

• Rushed Specialist Appointments: Even if patients manage to see a specialist, the experience is often constrained by insurance mandates. Appointments are rushed, and providers may not review a patient’s history beforehand due to time pressures. This reflects a broader issue where mental health care quality is undermined by structural inefficiencies in the system (Kilbourne et al., 2018).

• Therapy Without Assessment: While therapy is invaluable, it’s not a substitute for diagnostic clarity. Without a proper evaluation, therapy often addresses symptoms without identifying their root causes. This is akin to treating the surface of a problem while leaving its underlying issues unaddressed—a challenge highlighted in mental health quality improvement literature (Kilbourne et al., 2018).

Our Commitment to Quality and Accuracy

At Dr. Long & Associates, we reject the limitations of the insurance model because it compromises our ability to deliver the depth and clarity you deserve. Comprehensive mental health evaluations require time, expertise, and a multidisciplinary approach. The fragmented, cost-driven nature of the current system simply isn’t equipped to provide this level of care.

By not accepting insurance, we are free to prioritize you—your history, your concerns, and your needs—without the constraints of arbitrary time limits or outdated reimbursement structures. As studies have shown, the lack of systematic methods for measuring and improving mental health care quality has perpetuated poor outcomes in traditional models (Kilbourne et al., 2018). We aim to correct this by providing thorough, personalized evaluations and actionable treatment plans.

The Cost of Undiagnosed or Misdiagnosed Mental Health Conditions

We understand that choosing a provider outside of your insurance coverage can feel frustrating. However, the cost of undiagnosed or misdiagnosed conditions—financially, emotionally, and in terms of quality of life—far exceeds the investment in a comprehensive evaluation. Persons with severe mental health conditions often face a 10–25-year reduction in life expectancy due to untreated or improperly managed conditions (Kilbourne et al., 2018).

Our approach prioritizes accuracy, collaboration, and actionable care, offering a level of support that the insurance-driven system simply cannot match. Let us help you achieve the clarity and direction you need to move forward.

Description text gDr. Long and Associates' specialty is mental health evaluation and testing, which should always be the first step in a modern, best-practice approach to achieving optimal mental health outcomes. Unfortunately, the way mental health treatment typically works today is somewhat backward, leading to misdiagnoses and potentially unnecessary treatments that could worsen outcomes. While any step taken towards working on your mental health is fantastic, the current approach many people follow is illogical. Many individuals begin their therapeutic journey by skipping the first, and arguably the most important, step. As it stands, most people who face struggles simply find a therapist online and start therapy, completely skipping the comprehensive evaluation part of the process. It's like having a persistent headache and directly visiting a neurosurgeon for brain surgery without first consulting a general practitioner for a proper evaluation and diagnosis. Dr. Long recommends that anyone concerned about mental health disorders or needing diagnostic clarity should begin with a doctoral-level psychologist for a formal mental health assessment.

The problem with the current approach is that many therapeutic providers do not have the specific training required to conduct a comprehensive evaluation and testing to gain an overall understanding of someone's current mental health status. This is where our expertise at Dr. Long and Associates comes into play. We do not offer therapy as our core specialty is evaluation and testing.

With a mental health assessment from Dr. Long and Associates, you can actually begin your therapeutic process on the right foot by already knowing what, if any, mental health diagnoses you have. Once we complete your mental health evaluation, you will have a feedback session, and we will have referrals ready for you that are experts in addressing your specific needs. This approach is called personalized mental health care, and it leads to much better outcomes and reduces misdiagnoses.oes here

GOOD FAITH ESTIMATE

Under Section 2799B-6 of the Public Health Service Act, health care providers and health care facilities are required to inform individuals who are not enrolled in a plan or coverage or a Federal health care program, or not seeking to file a claim with their plan or coverage both orally and in writing of their ability, upon request or at the time of scheduling health care items and services, to receive a “Good Faith Estimate” of expected charges.

You have the right to receive a “Good Faith Estimate” explaining how much your medical care will cost.

Under the law, health care providers need to give patients who don’t have insurance or who are not using insurance an estimate of the bill for medical items and services.

You have the right to receive a Good Faith Estimate for the total expected cost of any non-emergency items or services. This includes related costs like medical tests, prescription drugs, equipment, and hospital fees.

Make sure your health care provider gives you a Good Faith Estimate in writing at least 1 business day before your medical service or item. You can also ask your health care provider, and any other provider you choose, for a Good Faith Estimate before you schedule an item or service.

If you receive a bill that is at least $400 more than your Good Faith Estimate, you can dispute the bill.

Make sure to save a copy or picture of your Good Faith Estimate. For questions or more information about your right to a Good Faith Estimate, visit www.cms.gov/nosurprises or call 1-800-985-3059.oes here