Fees for Psychology Services

Psychology fees depend upon the nature of the service provided and the time spent.

If an Evaluation is going to be conducted with you or your child, we will estimate the costs of the evaluation. Costs of evaluation-review of background information, all interviews, objective testing, integration of results, delivery of findings, and reporting-vary depending upon the needs of a client.

The process could be as little as a couple of hours but could take much longer, depending upon the complexity of the issues involved, the number of people interviewed (teachers, physicians, etc.), and the ability of the person assessed to attend to testing activities for lengthy periods.

Fees for individual, family-based, or group-based Intervention are based upon an hourly fee.

To the extent a family is responsible for fees-where an insurance company requires that you pay a co-payment or where no insurance benefits are applicable-payment is normally expected at the time of service.

Red Ladder Optimized Learning will accept payment by cheque, cash, major credit card, or over time in certain cases.

Private Health Insurance for Services

Red Ladder Optimized Learning services are covered by most extended health plans, including Blue Cross, Great-West Life, Manulife, Canada Life, etc.

Many people are unaware of the extent to which extended health coverage they have in place will cover psychological fees. Depending upon the kind of insurance you have private practice psychological services may be affordable or may not involve any out of pocket costs.

Most health plans provide a yearly maximum coverage of between $300 and $1000 per family member. If a psychologist provides services to a child or teen, it is normal for at least one parent to be involved as well. In this case, the insurance coverage of more than one family member may be appropriately accessed, with the result that most or all costs may be reimbursed by the insurance company.

We are familiar with the use of extended health benefits and will be glad to discuss this with you.

Third-Party Payers

In some instances, the psychological fees may be paid in whole or part by a third party. Examples of third party payers are Child and Family Services, a First Nations Band or Educational Authority, the Department of National Defence, Veterans Affairs Canada, certain Provincial or Federal government employment and education programs, the Workers' Compensation Board, social assistance programs (Income Security), legal aid, and education and training departments of some corporations.

Tax Issues:

Any fees paid to a registered clinical psychologist and not re-imbursed by an insurance company, may be deductible as a medical expense on a federal tax return. We will be glad to discuss this with you.

If evaluation leads to the diagnosis of a significant learning difficulty, documentation of this may lead to eligibility for Disability Tax Credit.

info@redladder.ca