+Do you accept insurance?

No, we do not accept insurance. While Growing Minds Psychology is not a participating provider in any insurance company plans (out-of-network), we will provide you the documentation for you to independently submit to your insurance company for potential out-of-network reimbursement should your child meet diagnostic criteria for a mental health diagnosis. The diagnoses will be provided following the initial evaluation. The superbills are provided once a week for therapy patients and following the parent feedback session for neuropsychological evaluation patients. While some insurance companies may provide reimbursement, there are no guarantees for reimbursement. If you are interested in seeking reimbursement for future services, we recommend speaking with your insurance company before scheduling appointments so that you can fully understand what the cost will be to you. You can share with your insurance company the provider’s NPI and the expected CPT codes to get an estimate of the services, if any, that may be reimbursed and at what percentage.

+What is your practice's Tax ID#, NPI#, and CPT codes for evaluation and treatment?

Practice Information - Growing Minds Psychology PLLC

• Tax ID (EIN): 85-3923766
• NPI: 1568052587
• Practice Location: 414 East 75th Street, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10021

CPT (Procedure) Codes: If you confirm services at Growing Minds Psychology, we will send you a Good Faith Estimate that includes the service codes for your specific treatment. Below are the most frequently used service codes. Please note, all telehealth sessions will include a 95 modifier. Please also note, consultation calls to outside providers do not have an associated service code and cannot be submitted for reimbursement.

Therapy

• 90791 - Psychological Evaluation
• 90832 - Psychotherapy, 30 minutes
• 90834 - Psychotherapy, 45 minutes
• 90837 - Psychotherapy, 60 minutes
• 90846 - Family Psychotherapy without Patient
• 90847 - Family Psychotherapy with Patient.

Neuropsychological Evaluation with Licensed Psychologist

• 90791 - Psychiatric Diagnostic Evaluation
• 96136 - Neuropsychological Testing Administration and Scoring Qualified Health Professional, 1st 30 minutes
• 96137 - Neuropsychological Testing Administration and Scoring Qualified Health Professional, Additional Hours
• 96132 - Neuropsychological Testing Services Qualified Health Professional 1st Hour
• 96133 - Neuropsychological Testing Services Qualified Health Professional Additional Hours

Neuropsychological Evaluation with a testing technician supervised by a Licensed Psychologist

• 90791 - Psychiatric Diagnostic Evaluation
• 96138 - Neuropsychological Testing Administration and Scoring Technician, 1st 30 minutes
• 96139 - Neuropsychological Testing Administration and Scoring Technician, Additional Hours
• 96132 - Neuropsychological Testing Services Qualified Health Professional 1st Hour
• 96133 - Neuropsychological Testing Services Qualified Health Professional Additional Hours

+No Surprises Act

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.

+What is included in the initial therapy intake?

The initial therapy intake includes a review of records, a thorough clinical interview with parents, and an observation session with the child. Following the initial intake, we hold a feedback meeting to plan treatment and share diagnostic impressions.

+Should I tell my child what we are really doing together?

Absolutely! We believe in transparency with children. They want to feel included in the evaluation and treatment process and by sharing our goals, we are building the trust that they need to face any anxieties, learning needs, or challenging behaviors.

+Can you help me if my child needs medication too?

While we cannot prescribe medication within Growing Minds Psychology, we work closely with a handful of psychiatrists in the area and can recommend a provider who best meets your family’s needs.

+Will you work with our school and other service providers?

We encourage collaboration across providers as an integral part of the evaluation and treatment process. To ensure privacy and confidentiality, you will have an option to sign a Release of Information for us to discuss details with others.

+Do you provide therapy / evaluation services in my state?

Our clinicians are licensed to provide therapy to patients who live in New York and Illinois. Evaluations can currently be provided in New York. If you live in another state or country and are interested in services, please reach out and we will see if there is a way to work together given your location.

+ What types of anxiety disorders do you treat?

Anxiety can present itself in different ways. We treat separation anxiety, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety, selective mutism, and specific phobias.

+ How do you treat anxiety?

Anxiety is managed through facing anxieties and tolerating the discomfort, which is called exposure therapy. While the automatic response will be to avoid a feared object or experience, exposure therapy challenges people to directly address those fears. This is done through a combination of live and virtual exposures and is facilitated both during and between sessions. Depending on the presenting problem and the age of the child, exposures may be done directly with the child or done indirectly through parents. Either way, our goal is to live an exposure lifestyle, where families look for opportunities to challenge themselves through the anxiety each and every day. Anxiety can also be treated through reducing parent accommodations. In this treatment, parents are taught how to change their own behaviors while conveying acceptance and confidence in the child, thereby helping the child to manage anxious responses.

+ What if my child doesn’t have a disorder, but needs help with anxiety anyway?

If your child needs coping strategies and other supports, we can definitely help. Providing a child with resiliency skills can be beneficial as a preventative approach.

+ Won’t my child grow out of behavior problems?

If you child suddenly presents with behavior problems, particularly around a change or developmental shift, then it is possible that these challenges will pass. If you child presents with persistent, impairing behavior that impact your family, your child’s friendships, and their schooling, then you likely need more support.

+ Why do I need to attend sessions with my child?

Behavior problems tend to be the result of learned behaviors. Especially when children are young, they need the consistency and support of their caregivers to change their behaviors. We want you to feel equipped to help your child manage their behaviors outside of sessions and need your involvement to practice within sessions first. So yes, you will attend sessions both with and without your child.

+ How long will we be in treatment?

We believe that treatment should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. It should always be goal-directed and transparency is key to ensure we are achieving those goals together. However, the length of treatment varies based on the severity of your child’s needs, the consistency of sessions, and commitment to between session work.

+ What if my child struggles with behavior because of anxiety or other challenges?

Problematic behavior is often the result of another challenge. Since we specialize in both anxiety and behavior management, we can help guide you in which treatment would be most appropriate first as well as how to apply strategies effectively based on your child’s specific needs. We often find that while addressing one problematic behavior, the other becomes more manageable as well.

+ What is Selective Mutism?

Selective Mutism (SM) is an anxiety disorder where a child is unable to speak in certain social situations, despite being able to talk in others. There is a noticeable and significant shift in a child’s speech across settings, such that they may be completely silent at school even though they are described as a chatterbox at home. This anxiety interferes with both social interactions and educational achievement, as children struggle to ask for help, speak with teachers, identify mistakes, decide on writing topics, and read in front of the class. While these behaviors can be misunderstood as oppositional, this lack of speech is due to high anxiety around certain people, places, or situations. We know that kids do not outgrow SM and that untreated or undertreated SM can put kids at risk for other anxiety disorders. Early, often intensive intervention is key to helping children with SM face their fears and successfully speak across settings.

+ How do you treat Selective Mutism?

The early stages of treatment typically involve intensive interventions to teach caregivers and school staff effective skills to manage symptoms of SM, while giving children a significant boost of behavioral medicine. Once your child has gained momentum in facing their SM, weekly individual and group services can be added to focus on specific therapeutic goals.

+ What does intensive treatment mean?

Intensive treatment typically means longer sessions that are scheduled close together. It could mean multiple sessions in one day and/or in one week. Since children with SM tend to be slower to warm, intensive treatment allows them to make gains more quickly. By continuing with treatment consistently, it gives less time for your child to freeze between sessions and provides the opportunity to face additional goals once they have warmed up within sessions.

+ Do I need to attend sessions with my child?

In the beginning, definitely! You will attend sessions with and without your child to teach you skills to implement at home and in sessions. Once your child has made significant gains and is ready for higher-level goals (e.g., peers, presentations, conversational speech), we may have you take a back seat to help your child be more independent.

+ Can you work with the school too?

If your child needs additional support in school, we can provide training for school staff as well as live coaching opportunities for your child’s teachers to ensure they are correctly using learned strategies. For students who require supports beyond a general education program, we are able to consult with you and your school district to develop a 504 Accommodation Plan or an Individualized Education Plan (IEP).

+ How do I know if it is time for an evaluation?

As a parent/caregiver, you know your child best. If your child has undergone an evaluation previously and you still feel that you do not have enough information on where to go or what to do next, or you were told your instincts were wrong, then it may be the right time for pursuing a second opinion from a specialist. If you are concerned about your child’s learning, development, or any of your child’s academic skills, please feel free to contact us for a free 30-minute consultation call to find out if this is the right time for an evaluation.

+ What are your specialties?

Our areas of expertise in assessment are dyslexia, dysgraphia, ADHD, autism spectrum disorders, nonverbal learning disorders, executive functioning issues, and twice-exceptional (2E) students. We are particularly attune to social-emotional conditions including anxiety, disruptive behaviors, and selective mutism.

+ Are you currently conducting evaluations in-person or remotely?

We are offering evaluations both in-person and remotely. Depending on your child’s age, clinical need, location, and your preferences, we will identify an appropriate evaluation procedure. Most evaluations are currently being conducted in-person, with intake and feedback sessions conducted remotely.

+ Do you provide recommendations for school placement?

Yes! We have extensive experience navigating school placement in the New York area, including mainstream public and private schools, as well as special education schools.

+ Do you conduct classroom observations as part of the evaluation process?

Yes. We believe that the classroom observation is an integral part to the evaluation process. We are conducting both in-person and virtual observations.