New hands at private practice tend to hate dealing with insurance. What with staying on top of every client’s benefit eligibility and deductible, explaining co-pays versus co-insurance and why you can’t allow sliding scale to whittle a $30 out of pocket payment down to $5, waiting months to get paid insultingly low contract rates, threats of being audited, restrictions and requirements of HIPAA, and so on, the administrative side of dealing with insurance is just a big pain in the derriere.
And it’s a nasty surprise that getting on insurance panels doesn’t necessarily mean an immediate and steady stream of clients. You still have to network with referral sources like doctors, lawyers, school counselors and other third party go-betweens. That fact may be welcomed by extroverts, but combined with admin hassles is a discouraging and depressing reality for introverts.
I’m known to advocate for introverted counselors who want to market for private pay clients, so it may come as a shock to hear that if you’re just starting out as a therapist and have student loans still to pay off that it may be wise in a rebuilding economy to look at the possibility of being on one or two insurance panels.
Since I’m by no means an insurance expert, I’ll refer you to Barb Griswold’s excellent resource Navigating the Insurance Maze which has been so popular for therapists that it’s now in its 3rd edition. At the least, get on her free ezine list.
What I can help you with is the marketing campaigns for getting those referral sources to become a better stream of clients for you. And here are a couple tips to start with.
1. Network with Allied Providers on the same Insurance Panels Physicians especially like to refer to specialists who take the same insurances that they do. In your intro letter or meet-n-greet, highlight that you are on the same panel as an advantage for helping THEIR patients work down their deductibles.
2. Pitch Expertise that Helps the Other Provider Ideally, you’ll be sharing clients. You will both have a strong interest in serving those clients. In networking with allied providers talk about how what you do will help make what they do even more effective, long lasting, or simple for the clients. Use medical statistics that are also relevant to mental health and speak to how you can help their patients overcome or cope with psychobiological problems. (Most illness has a stress component, so making that connection won’t be hard to do)
3. Offer Team Approach and Progress Reports Position yourself as a valuable member of their team, a colleague who speaks their language, to gain their trust, respect and referrals.
4. Collect Physician Contact Info on Your Intake Forms When you get a client who has not been referred, get a release to let their doc know that you are working with a patient of theirs. Offer treatment plan or progress reports to help the doctor have broader knowledge of their patient’s total health. Even if the physician declines or fails to respond to your offer, you will have demonstrated your professionalism and claimed a position as specialist they could refer to.
5. Never Stop Networking Building a referral network that keeps your pipeline filled with a steady stream of new clients isn’t a one shot effort. Referral sources must be cultivated and nurtured, and this takes multiple efforts. Have a variety of ways to remind your target referral sources that you are still in business and still appreciate their referrals.
No Hype Coaching Questions: What percentage of your clientele do you want to come from allied providers? Are your marketing efforts commensurate with that intent?
No Hype Help: Networking and referral building take time, patience, and a fair amount of extroverted energy. Other marketing methods are needed while you wait for referrals to show up. If you’re looking for more options for attracting clients, you may want to take the Get Clients Now! training program starting January 27. See details.
Spread the word: Use icons below to Tweet, Facebook, LinkedIn or email about this blogpost.
And your comments are welcomed.
