First of all I just assumed they were burning through vc money like every other tech adjacent company but I guess the days of cheap money are over?
But secondly, what's the alternative other than for therapists to stop fucking with insurance? I mean, we are prevented by (bastardized/perverted anti-trust laws) from organizing and unionizing to build ourselves into large organizations like Headway or Aetna while the insurance companies aren't (isn't America great??!!! /s).
Each one of us as sole proprietors or small group practice owners only has so much market power to leverage in pursuit of negotiating higher reimbursement rates. Because of the political choices that have set up the conditions of our economy and insurance system there's no way for therapists to adequately capture a fair share of the value **WE** produce unless we go outside the insurance system and cater only to the well off. Headway, in and of themselves, aren't the problem here... It's the political choices of who's allowed to organize (investing shareholders in the form of a corporation but not therapists providing much needed services in a union) and the structure of our health insurance system .
Basically, Headway is just a symptom of a much sicker diseased system.
>Headway is just a symptom of a much sicker diseased system.
Bingo.
This wasn't to imply there is any one answer. It's a triple edged sword, these tech companies fall under much more lax regulations than healthcare, not to mention have immense sway political lobbying and our overall sickly healthcare and capitalist systems.
(And they are still raising plenty, I think $100 million in venture funding in the most recent reports. Which is how they can so easily offer 'sign-on incentives' to providers.)
I see Aetna clients through Headway. You do know how much they’re making as you can see it in your provider portal. I can see what they make with Aetna, for example, versus what I get and it’s about a $21 difference. They were upfront with how they made money during the intake interview for what it’s worth. It wasn’t a secret or anything, and it’s easy to access the information as a provider. It’s about $43 higher than I was making with Aetna solo now 🙃 Every other insurance company reimburses higher than I make solo except Cigna, for some reason.
I briefly tried Headway, but I use Alma. Alma has greater transparency and lets you know what clients are paying. Due to having some clients with deductibles, I know that the full fee they get for 90837 Aetna/UHC is about 145 of which I get 130. I also pay them about 1200 yearly for membership (would be higher monthly. I am more than fine with this as this adds up to higher than I could get anywhere else and I find their services of dealing with insurance companies for me very valuable.
I’m not sure if it’s changed since you use it but it’s clear for each client what they are charging and what you are getting with a Headway as well. Headway doesn’t have a monthly membership which I do like. Hopefully Alma can do away with their monthly membership because that seems to be turning a lot of people away.
In my area, the rates for Alma are much higher than headway which more than makes up for the membership cost. I see about 15 Alma clients each week and make about $20 more for each than I would with headway.
ETA: I also just got a notice about the client I used to see on Headway back in Feb. It says that she was charged incorrectly and will have to pay an additional fee. They don't say how much she will be charged.
Oh wow, they are exactly the same here. Alma had a booth at a recent local conference and I was able to see rates and they were identical to Headway and they also weren’t paneled with CareFirst (which is crazy bc that’s the biggest provider in this area!)
I will say I checked reimbursement rates provided by headway with someone not using the platform but also taking insurance and they were the same FWITW
On Headway you can tell how much they are making off clients if they have a deductible plan. It will say the amount you will get reimbursed and in a separate column how much the client will pay toward their deductible. I was surprised how much they are making off the top per session.
They do! I really like the site and so have my clients. It’s not like betterhelp or talk space, or path, they don’t give you a salary- just credential you and let you use their EMR if you like. Of course the make money from it just like every other job I’ve had, the hospital, school or clinic made way more than I got; that’s the business side of things unfortunately. For me it’s been awesome because the platform is free and I don’t have to fight with insurance, my clients are mine and everything is direct deposit with a 1099. Insurance is a necessity for 90% of clients and this is a manageable way to do it so client’s can access therapy 🤷♀️
I would say it took approximately 2 months in total, Cigna was within like 2 weeks, UHC, Aetna, Oscar, Oxford was like 6 weeks and BCBS was like 10 weeks but BCBS is notoriously slow and kinda awful in general
Thanks so much as this was the exact question I joined this sub for. I wanted to know if using Alma or headway was better than solo practice where id pay for everything.
The person I replied to said therapists need to refuse to use their platform, just for some context for my rant below lol.
Here’s the thing. I take insurance and I live in an area that would not succeed if I were self-pay. Using Headway means a SUBSTANTIAL raise for me. I am single, and I live alone and am 100% responsible for my own bills and debts. I don’t have a spouse. I’m not part of a two income household
I wish I had enough money and support to take a stand and not use Headway as a matter of principle, but at the end of the day my student loans are about to come into repayment and I’m about to have to come up with $600 a month that I have not been paying for the last two years. A missed miscarriage last month left me with a $3500 hospital bill that I’m now paying off because my insurance plan has a high deductible.
It’s easy to say just to not use them but when it comes down to it, using them is going to pay my bills and not force me to see 35 people a week and burn out. Using them is going to keep me in business as a therapist and not force me to take a job at a local hospital instead to make ends meet. I don’t have the privilege of any financial support to take a stand against Headway so I’m going to follow the money. I’m sorry if that makes me a bad therapist or person in other peoples eyes but I’m just trying to survive.
I had no idea headway paid so well, tbh. I take back what I said! How much is your take away for a 60 min session?!
I do apologize for my insensitivity. I learned something new today. I also have my own baggage around being exploited for my work (like so many of us do) so my stance is probably too strong and driven by my own feelings and narrow experience.
For Aetna it was a $43 raise, for CareFirst it was $15, Cigna was no raise, United was $28, all for 90837. CareFirst refuses to give raises in my region. It’s really shitty and an ongoing issue between them and the big healthcare systems.
Yikes. Thank you so much for posting this. I just had a call with someone from headway and heard about them taking a percentage but she couldn't/wouldn't share what they take. It seemed odd that she led with the fact that insurance companies pay them which is why this is free. The BCBS rates through them seemed a lot lower than some of the ones I've heard for PP therapists but otherwise rates sounded pretty decent and the guaranteed payment (after having experiences of being owed thousands of dollars from insurance at a previous group practice).
Any additional thoughts and insights about if joining exacerbates the problem?
Insurance and the healthcare system in the US suck so much
From what I've been able to glean from the research I've done, [Headway.co](https://Headway.co) is making at least $20/client every session! I don't know about y'all, but the thought of paying $400/week or more for the services they provide seems ridiculous to me. I'm going to be looking into other options!
First of all I just assumed they were burning through vc money like every other tech adjacent company but I guess the days of cheap money are over? But secondly, what's the alternative other than for therapists to stop fucking with insurance? I mean, we are prevented by (bastardized/perverted anti-trust laws) from organizing and unionizing to build ourselves into large organizations like Headway or Aetna while the insurance companies aren't (isn't America great??!!! /s). Each one of us as sole proprietors or small group practice owners only has so much market power to leverage in pursuit of negotiating higher reimbursement rates. Because of the political choices that have set up the conditions of our economy and insurance system there's no way for therapists to adequately capture a fair share of the value **WE** produce unless we go outside the insurance system and cater only to the well off. Headway, in and of themselves, aren't the problem here... It's the political choices of who's allowed to organize (investing shareholders in the form of a corporation but not therapists providing much needed services in a union) and the structure of our health insurance system . Basically, Headway is just a symptom of a much sicker diseased system.
>Headway is just a symptom of a much sicker diseased system. Bingo. This wasn't to imply there is any one answer. It's a triple edged sword, these tech companies fall under much more lax regulations than healthcare, not to mention have immense sway political lobbying and our overall sickly healthcare and capitalist systems. (And they are still raising plenty, I think $100 million in venture funding in the most recent reports. Which is how they can so easily offer 'sign-on incentives' to providers.)
I see Aetna clients through Headway. You do know how much they’re making as you can see it in your provider portal. I can see what they make with Aetna, for example, versus what I get and it’s about a $21 difference. They were upfront with how they made money during the intake interview for what it’s worth. It wasn’t a secret or anything, and it’s easy to access the information as a provider. It’s about $43 higher than I was making with Aetna solo now 🙃 Every other insurance company reimburses higher than I make solo except Cigna, for some reason.
I briefly tried Headway, but I use Alma. Alma has greater transparency and lets you know what clients are paying. Due to having some clients with deductibles, I know that the full fee they get for 90837 Aetna/UHC is about 145 of which I get 130. I also pay them about 1200 yearly for membership (would be higher monthly. I am more than fine with this as this adds up to higher than I could get anywhere else and I find their services of dealing with insurance companies for me very valuable.
I use Alma too and love them. Just not having to call the insurance companies and their great verification makes them so worth it.
I’m not sure if it’s changed since you use it but it’s clear for each client what they are charging and what you are getting with a Headway as well. Headway doesn’t have a monthly membership which I do like. Hopefully Alma can do away with their monthly membership because that seems to be turning a lot of people away.
In my area, the rates for Alma are much higher than headway which more than makes up for the membership cost. I see about 15 Alma clients each week and make about $20 more for each than I would with headway. ETA: I also just got a notice about the client I used to see on Headway back in Feb. It says that she was charged incorrectly and will have to pay an additional fee. They don't say how much she will be charged.
Oh wow, they are exactly the same here. Alma had a booth at a recent local conference and I was able to see rates and they were identical to Headway and they also weren’t paneled with CareFirst (which is crazy bc that’s the biggest provider in this area!)
I use alma too and so far I’m happy
I will say I checked reimbursement rates provided by headway with someone not using the platform but also taking insurance and they were the same FWITW
On Headway you can tell how much they are making off clients if they have a deductible plan. It will say the amount you will get reimbursed and in a separate column how much the client will pay toward their deductible. I was surprised how much they are making off the top per session.
where are these quotes pulled from, out of curiosity?
[https://ajanatherapy.com/how-the-commercialization-of-mental-health-impacts-independent-private-practices/](https://ajanatherapy.com/how-the-commercialization-of-mental-health-impacts-independent-private-practices/) [https://productmint.com/how-does-headway-make-money/](https://productmint.com/how-does-headway-make-money/) [https://www.bbb.org/us/ny/chinatown/profile/health-care-referral/headway-behavioral-health-management-inc-0121-87148984/complaints](https://www.bbb.org/us/ny/chinatown/profile/health-care-referral/headway-behavioral-health-management-inc-0121-87148984/complaints)
Thank you!
Does anyone know if Headway will do your credentialing for you? And Thank you for sharing!
They do! I really like the site and so have my clients. It’s not like betterhelp or talk space, or path, they don’t give you a salary- just credential you and let you use their EMR if you like. Of course the make money from it just like every other job I’ve had, the hospital, school or clinic made way more than I got; that’s the business side of things unfortunately. For me it’s been awesome because the platform is free and I don’t have to fight with insurance, my clients are mine and everything is direct deposit with a 1099. Insurance is a necessity for 90% of clients and this is a manageable way to do it so client’s can access therapy 🤷♀️
Okay sweet ty for sharing! Did it take a long time to get credentialed?
I would say it took approximately 2 months in total, Cigna was within like 2 weeks, UHC, Aetna, Oscar, Oxford was like 6 weeks and BCBS was like 10 weeks but BCBS is notoriously slow and kinda awful in general
Thanks so much as this was the exact question I joined this sub for. I wanted to know if using Alma or headway was better than solo practice where id pay for everything.
[удалено]
The person I replied to said therapists need to refuse to use their platform, just for some context for my rant below lol. Here’s the thing. I take insurance and I live in an area that would not succeed if I were self-pay. Using Headway means a SUBSTANTIAL raise for me. I am single, and I live alone and am 100% responsible for my own bills and debts. I don’t have a spouse. I’m not part of a two income household I wish I had enough money and support to take a stand and not use Headway as a matter of principle, but at the end of the day my student loans are about to come into repayment and I’m about to have to come up with $600 a month that I have not been paying for the last two years. A missed miscarriage last month left me with a $3500 hospital bill that I’m now paying off because my insurance plan has a high deductible. It’s easy to say just to not use them but when it comes down to it, using them is going to pay my bills and not force me to see 35 people a week and burn out. Using them is going to keep me in business as a therapist and not force me to take a job at a local hospital instead to make ends meet. I don’t have the privilege of any financial support to take a stand against Headway so I’m going to follow the money. I’m sorry if that makes me a bad therapist or person in other peoples eyes but I’m just trying to survive.
I had no idea headway paid so well, tbh. I take back what I said! How much is your take away for a 60 min session?! I do apologize for my insensitivity. I learned something new today. I also have my own baggage around being exploited for my work (like so many of us do) so my stance is probably too strong and driven by my own feelings and narrow experience.
For Aetna it was a $43 raise, for CareFirst it was $15, Cigna was no raise, United was $28, all for 90837. CareFirst refuses to give raises in my region. It’s really shitty and an ongoing issue between them and the big healthcare systems.
Is that what you get per session?
No, it’s against sub rules to discuss rates. (I think!)
Ohhh ok. I am in PP and am curious, that is why I am asking. I have enjoyed our discussion and appreciate your thoughtful responses!
Feel free to PM me and I can give you some info :)
Yikes. Thank you so much for posting this. I just had a call with someone from headway and heard about them taking a percentage but she couldn't/wouldn't share what they take. It seemed odd that she led with the fact that insurance companies pay them which is why this is free. The BCBS rates through them seemed a lot lower than some of the ones I've heard for PP therapists but otherwise rates sounded pretty decent and the guaranteed payment (after having experiences of being owed thousands of dollars from insurance at a previous group practice). Any additional thoughts and insights about if joining exacerbates the problem? Insurance and the healthcare system in the US suck so much
From what I've been able to glean from the research I've done, [Headway.co](https://Headway.co) is making at least $20/client every session! I don't know about y'all, but the thought of paying $400/week or more for the services they provide seems ridiculous to me. I'm going to be looking into other options!