No--because we offer comprehensive assessments that insurance simply will not reimburse for in a way that makes it financially viable, it means we cannot accept insurance for any services that we offer. Insurance for mental health benefits is increasingly difficult to work with because insurance companies attempt to dictate treatment in ways that can impact your care, including limiting the number of sessions you can access or the types of assessment instruments we can utilize in your testing. Because we are committed to providing exceptional services that are individually tailored to you, we are entirely out of network with every insurance company. Upon request, you can be provided with documentation that you may submit to your insurance company. Depending upon the specifics of your policy, you may be partially reimbursed for some of the services we provide. It is important that you know that because insurance requires information related to diagnoses and procedure codes, the "superbill" (as it is termed in the insurance world) will contain potentially sensitive information that will become part of your record with the insurance company.  

Absolutely!  We enjoy helping people of all stages of life with all types of presenting issues. If we do not feel we have the necessary expertise, or if we know you can get comparable quality services through your insurance, we may refer you to others. We have a broad referral network as we have been practicing in and around Austin for decades. Our providers are well-respected and regarded within the mental health community. 

The evaluation starts with a parent consultation at a cost of $325. When you book the testing appointment, that money is applied to the total cost, with an additional charge of $275 as a deposit to hold the testing appointments on your clinician's calendar. The balance of the testing is due on the day of testing. The total cost for a typical assessment is $3750, but in certain cases, it may be more or less--you will be provided with an individualized quote after the initial consultation.  

A complete pricing list is available in the form of a Good Faith Estimate as part of the No Surprises Act. This list does not include reduced fee services or sliding scale services that we offer as part of our larger mission to make quality care more accessible for those who could not otherwise access it. In some cases, reduced fee services will be provided by a trainee supervised by a licensed clinician. Please inquire through our contact form about availability of these services.  

• After the initial parent meeting, testing will be scheduled in one or two sessions--there are advantages to scheduling a longer session that resembles the length of a typical school day, as well as dividing into separate half-day sessions.  
• We can typically schedule testing 3 to 5 weeks from the date of the consult, although sometimes, we have availability in 1 to 2 weeks. Contact the office for information about our various providers' current availability. 
• Typically 6 to 8 hours of face to face time is necessary to complete the activities.
•  After all the testing is completed and all information has been returned (including teacher and parent questionnaires), a meeting with parents will be scheduled to review all the data. This usually takes 3 weeks after all the information is back. After that, a written report is completed that will be shared with parents, and an individual feedback session with the child or teen is scheduled so that they may receive developmentally-appropriate, individualized information on their strengths and weaknesses as well. From start to finish, the evaluation process usually takes 4 to 6 weeks to be completed. 

• The evaluator will conduct measures of intelligence/cognitive functioning, attention, executive functioning, memory, academic achievement, visual/motor coordination (when indicated), and social/emotional measures. 
• We also include thorough history, parent information, completion of parent questionnaires, completion of teacher questionnaires/input, and a review of previous evaluations, work samples, other standardized test scores/performance. 
• We perform extensive testing, one-on-one with a psychologist (and possibly our experienced SLP for autism assessments) usually taking anywhere from 6 to 8 hours. 
• We also will obtain input from therapists or other providers who work with the child/teen/adult.  
• 90-minute feedback meeting with parents (or patient if they are an adult)
• 45 to 60 minute feedback meeting with child or teen (or sometimes a letter will be generated for parents to read to their child depending upon the preferences of the family).
• A thorough, highly usable, integrated report to share with schools, testing agencies, or other providers, with real-world, applicable, and individualized recommendations based upon the results of the testing. 
• Follow up email consultation for the next several weeks or months as you navigate applying recommendations, such as finding a qualified tutor or therapist, obtaining school or workplace accommodations, or seeking any suggested follow-up care. 

• The night before testing, please ensure your child or teen gets a good night's rest and that they eat a good breakfast the next morning.  
• We ask that you treat the testing day as a typical school day--dress them comfortably, pack snacks/lunch, refillable water bottle, anything they would want to be comfortable and cozy while they are at school.  
• If they take medication, please have them take it as prescribed. If they wear glasses, please make sure they have them with them.  
• You are welcome to stay in the waiting room if you would like, but most parents drop their children off and pick them up at the end of the session. Your teen is welcome to drive him/herself to the office.  
• Children and teens are prepared by the examiner that they are not supposed to know all of the answers asked of them--that is part of the process--so there is no studying or preparation to be done. In fact, websites that seek to help parents prepare their children for aspects of cognitive testing can artificially inflate cognitive scores, making it more difficult to get an accurate picture of their true problem solving abilities. 
• Any person engaging in testing is encouraged not to exaggerate or over-represent their symptoms--this actually can make the assessment invalid and make it more difficult to draw accurate conclusions from the data. 
• All that is needed for kids, teens, and adults on the testing day is to give their best try on everything presented to them, to be honest and open throughout, and to ask any questions they may have about the tests, the examiner, the purpose--anything on their minds is important to us.  
• We treat each of our patients, young, old, and everywhere in between, with the upmost care and respect. We do all we can to make sure they have a pleasant experience spending that time with us. 

It depends--our psychologists are willing to work with people to perform somewhat abbreviated testing but only if the situation indicates that this would be appropriate, answer your questions, and provide you with what you need to optimize your functioning in your daily life. Please call and ask about abbreviated evaluation services for adults if you do not believe you need a full assessment. In most situations, however, comprehensive testing is desired by the individual to get the most complete picture of their functioning, fully answer their questions, and gain the insight they are seeking as well.  

Depending upon the age of the person engaging in therapy, sessions will include a combination of talking about what is difficult and structured activities to help the therapist get to know the person better. Establishing rapport, or a positive working relationship, is the most important part of the initial therapy session. We will discuss confidentiality and review informed consent, hear about your concerns, and discuss a proposed treatment plan (how often you will meet, the focus of sessions, etc.). Additionally, we will collaboratively work to identify strengths as well as identify goals for therapy. We will periodically check in on progress and how you are feeling about the therapy process.  Therapy with us is client-centered and client-lead, so rest assured your concerns will always be top of mind and priority content when you come in for a session. 

If your child or teen is the identified participant in therapy, there is a certain amount of confidentiality that they must know is there in order for the process to be effective. However, we are trained in family systems and supporting parents to optimize family functioning is a primary goal of what we seek to do. We take great pride and joy in working ourselves out of a job! Therefore, as a parent you can expect to be involved in your child's treatment, and to get feedback on how you can support them and how your child is doing. This usually includes participating in the beginning or ending of sessions with younger children, where they can help summarize the session for you or teach you any skills we covered themselves. We may also schedule separate sessions with you to review progress and hear updates on your concerns as well.  If it is something that the child or teen is willing to do, we may schedule family sessions for everyone to participate together, reviewing what is going well and troubleshooting areas of remaining difficulty. 

No, we do not perform evaluations for court proceedings of any kind.