Psychiatry & Behavioral Health
- Does my insurance cover mental health visits at PAMF?
- Can the Intake Coordinators check my insurance benefits for me?
- Can I be evaluated for attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD) at PAMF?
- Are weekend & evening appointments available?
- What is your direct phone number? What if I get voicemail when I call?
- Who has an open practice?
- My child needs neuropsychological/educational testing. Can this be done at PAMF?
- Is there a detox/chemical dependency treatment program at PAMF?
- Do you accept Medi-Cal coverage?
- What is "mental health parity" and what diagnoses does it cover?
- What is your tax identification number?
- What are your fees?
- What is the difference between types of behavioral health providers?
- Why don't your psychiatrist see more patients for therapy?
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my insurance cover mental health visits at PAMF?
Coverage for psychiatric services varies by health insurance plans. Some plans have a "carve-out" for mental health care, meaning services are covered by a separate organization that the patient must contact directly. You should call your insurance provider or check your benefits manual to confirm if mental health services are covered in this department before calling our Intake Coordinators. View Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Plans Accepted
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Can the Intake Coordinators check my insurance benefits for me?
Due to patient privacy regulations insurance companies no longer disclose benefits information to third parties. As a result, our Intake Coordinators are unable to call insurance companies to verify mental health coverage. It is your responsibility to verify your mental health benefits and coverage with your insurance plan.
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Can I be evaluated for attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD) at PAMF?
Yes. We do evaluations for ADD/ADHD with a thorough psychiatric interview and evaluation of symptoms. Please note that there is not a specific "test" for this diagnosis.
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Are weekend & evening appointments available?
No. Our regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Some providers may occasionally schedule later appointments if their schedules are flexible, but this is decided by the individual provider.
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What is your direct phone number? What if I get voicemail when I call?
The direct phone number for our Intake Coordinators is 650-853-4726. Our Intake Coordinators take live calls Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 pm. If you get voicemail, that means they are busy talking to other people. When leaving a message please spell your name, leave your phone number with area code, the name of the patient, the patient’s date of birth, the name of the patient’s insurance company and the mental health/substance abuse phone number from the patient’s insurance card. We call people back in the order the calls are received. Please do not leave multiple messages.
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Who has an open practice?
Individual providers' practices are usually open, but occasionally closed to new patients if the provider has so many patients that he or she cannot serve their needs in a timely way. A closed practice opens again when the provider has time to take more new patients.
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My child needs neuropsychological/educational testing. Can this be done at PAMF?
We do not do any psychological, neurological or educational testing, but may refer you to a specialist in the community who does.
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Is there a detox/chemical dependency treatment program at PAMF?
No. We do not have a detox or chemical dependency treatment program at PAMF, but refer patients to programs in the community. We do help patients identify the level of treatment they need and work with those in the recovery stage after they have stopped using the drug.
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Do you accept Medi-Cal coverage?
No. We no longer maintain a contract with Medi-Cal to provide psychiatry and behavioral health services.
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What is "mental health parity" and what diagnoses does it cover?
Parity for behavioral health benefits simply means that insurers will cover certain mental health diagnoses in the same way they cover physical medical diagnoses. "Parity-covered diagnoses" are subject to the same co-pay, out-of-pocket maximum and benefit maximum as medical coverage. Mental health parity is mandated by legislation that applies to a defined list of diagnoses. Some examples are:
Parity Diagnoses (Partial List) | Non-Parity (a few examples) |
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What is your tax identification number?
94-1156581
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What are your fees?
Our current fees for 2011 are listed as follows (price is quoted at the minimum and varies depending on the time you spend with the provider):
- New patient consultation with physician (M.D.) = $340
- Medication follow-up with M.D. = $151
- New patient consultation with physician (M.D.) specializing in children = $850
- Medication follow-up with child M.D. = $151
- New patient consultation with Ph.D. = $219
- Psychotherapy follow-up with Ph.D. = $169
- New patient consultation with licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) or licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) = $195
- Psychotherapy follow-up with LCSW/LMFT = $146
- Psychotherapy group with Ph.D. and LCSW = $47
- Shared Medical Appointment = $151
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What is the difference between types of behavioral health providers?
Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSWs) and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFTs) have a master's degree and at least two years of training to treat a wide variety of mental health problems. A Ph.D. or Psy.D. has a doctorate in psychology, treats a wide range of mental health problems and may do diagnostic testing. A psychiatrist (M.D.) is a medical doctor who specializes in psychiatry and does mainly medication evaluations, as well as some psychotherapy.
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Why don't your psychiatrist see more patients for therapy?
All of our doctors do see some patients for therapy, but this is a smaller part of their practice since most of their time is used for medication evaluations and follow up. We have a team of highly qualified psychotherapists, including licensed clinical social workers, who do the bulk of psychotherapy and work closely with our physicians to coordinate treatment.
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