What to say when an inquiry asks if you take their insurance, word for word
The insurance question ends more private-pay consults than price does. Exact words for the phone, the email and the follow-up text that keep the right people talking.
"Do you take my insurance?" is the question that ends more first contacts than any other in a private-pay or out-of-network practice. The person asks, you say no, and the conversation is over before either of you learned whether you were a good fit.
The problem is rarely the answer. It is that "no" arrives alone, with nothing after it. Below are the exact words for the three places the question shows up: the phone, the email reply and the follow-up text a few days later. Adjust them to your license, your fees and your board's rules, but keep the structure.
The structure behind every version
Every good answer to the insurance question does four things in this order.
- Answers the question honestly in the first sentence. No dodging.
- Explains what the person can still do with their insurance, usually out-of-network benefits and a superbill.
- Names the fee plainly and any sliding scale or reduced slots you actually offer.
- Offers a next step that costs them nothing, such as a 15-minute consult.
If you skip step one, people feel handled. If you skip step two, you lose the ones who would have been reimbursed. If you skip step three, they assume the worst. If you skip step four, the call just ends.
On the phone
When someone asks during a callback or a consult call, say this:
"I'm out of network, so I don't bill your insurance directly. A lot of my clients still use their benefits, though. I give you a monthly superbill, which is a receipt with the codes your insurance asks for, and you submit it for reimbursement. How much comes back depends on your plan. My fee is $160 for a 50-minute session. Would it help if I sent you three questions to ask your insurance company, so you know your number before you decide?"
That last question matters. It gives the person a reason to stay in touch and a small, useful task. The fee in that script is an example; put your own number in. If you hold sliding-scale spots, add one sentence: "I also keep two reduced-fee spots. One is open right now if cost is the deciding factor."
In an email reply
Many people would rather write than call, especially for a first contact about something personal. When the insurance question arrives by email, reply within the same business day if you can. A useful reply looks like this:
Hi Dana,
Thanks for reaching out. I'm an out-of-network provider, so I don't bill insurance directly. Many of my clients use their out-of-network benefits by submitting a superbill I provide each month.
To find out what your plan would reimburse, you can call the member number on your card and ask:
- Do I have out-of-network outpatient mental health benefits?
- What is my out-of-network deductible, and how much of it is met?
- What percentage do you reimburse for CPT code 90837 after the deductible?
My fee is $160 per session. If it would help to talk it through, I offer a free 15-minute phone consult. Here are two times this week: Wednesday at 12:30 or Thursday at 4:00.
Warmly, Jordan
Two details in that email do most of the work. The three questions turn a vague "maybe" into a number the person can act on. The two specific times remove one back-and-forth, which is often where inquiries die. The missed calls and intake guide covers how fast those replies need to go out and who should send them.
Keep it free of anything clinical. Do not ask what they are struggling with in a reply to a pricing question. That belongs in the consult, on a secure channel, if they choose to share it.
The follow-up text, three days later
If the person said they would check with their insurance and then went quiet, one follow-up is reasonable. Send it only to someone who gave you a mobile number and agreed to texts, and keep it free of anything that reveals they contacted a therapist if someone else reads their phone.
"Hi Dana, it's Jordan following up on your question from Monday. Were you able to reach your insurance? Happy to answer anything about the superbill. If the timing isn't right, no reply needed."
That is the whole text. No diagnosis, no "your session," no word like therapy if you can avoid it. The last line gives them permission to say nothing, which is exactly why more people answer it.
When the answer is still no
Some people will hear the fee, learn their plan reimburses little, and decide it is not workable. Have a short, kind referral line ready:
"That makes sense. If you'd like, I can send you two names of in-network clinicians in town who work with what you described. I'd rather you get started with someone than wait."
You lose the client but keep your reputation, with them and with the colleague you referred to.
Put the answer on your site too
The phone and email scripts handle people who ask. Many people never ask. They look for the word "insurance" on your site, do not find it, and leave. Add a short fees section with the same four parts: the honest answer, the superbill explanation, your fee and the consult offer. The private-pay fees guide has a layout for that page and the wording around sliding scale.
It also helps your Google profile. Only 28.7% of practice profiles in our benchmark data show a public email, so a profile that shows one and links to a clear fees page is already ahead of most of the field.
If you want help putting these scripts into your intake flow, any service is available as a free 14-day trial, no card. Text or call (385) 217-8216.
Steven has spent the last several years running growth campaigns for local service businesses, therapists among them, and builds the benchmark datasets on this site from public Google listings. About the editor