Elaine Waller-Rose, LICSW

Getting Started

Making an appointment

After you’ve browsed through the website and determined you want to find out more, it’s time to make the initial phone call. If I am with a client or otherwise engaged when you call, please leave a message with your contact information and the best times to reach you. When I return calls, I identify myself by either my full or first name only, so as to respect confidentiality regarding the nature or our call. When we do speak, I’ll want to get a brief idea of what concerns led you to make the call, what services you are interested in (for example individual or couples’ work) and any sense of urgency or crisis that might be present. Though our talk will be brief, there is certainly time to elaborate more on these issues and ask any questions you have of me.

In addition to basic contact information, I may ask if substance use or thoughts of self harm are factors and whether access to medical or psychiatric services will be relevant to our work.

Fees

During this call we will discuss the method of payment you wish to use. If you do not have health insurance or prefer to pay out-of-pocket for other reasons, we will set a fee, so that you may begin with as much certainty as possible regarding financial details. My standard fee is $130 per session. I charge this amount to clients whose income exceeds that which qualifies for sliding scale fees. The sliding scale is based on annual household income from whatever sources one uses to meet their financial needs including paycheck, unemployment insurance, alimony, savings, etc. The starting point is $50.

Insurance

It is very likely that you can use your health insurance to access my services. Currently I am a Preferred Provider with the following insurances companies:

• Blue Cros/Blue Shield
• Regence
• Aetna
• First Choice Health
• Group Health Cooperative (PPO)

• Wellspring Family Services EAP
• Aetna EAP
• First Choice EAP

I encourage people to call their insurance provider and ask questions until you are satisfied before attending a session with me or any provider. Find out things such as:

1. Whether a deductable is involved, what it is and whether you have satisfied it.
2. If co-pay and/or coinsurance fees are involved and what the amounts are.
3. If there are limits to the amount of sessions covered or the kind of sessions covered. For instance many providers do not reimburse for couples’ therapy.
4. If your insurance provider allows for the use of out of network providers, you may still be able to apply your insurance to some percentage of the fee.