Mental Health, Insurance Companies, & Medical Marijuana

This is going to be an angry blog post. FYI. 

I have health insurance through my job. It is one of the larger companies so most doctors accept it. Mental health services are another story...

I've outgrown my current therapist. I just need a little more something. I'm out of the depression hole and leaving the house again, but I want to dig deeper. I also want to get off pills, which requires understanding how my brain works and developing coping skills to handle whatever the pills are currently handling for me. 

I've been hunting for a new therapist for two months. I have a fucking spreadsheet. Most of the therapists who accept insurance, and there aren't many, are not accepting new patients. I'm on several waiting lists. Two places were nice enough to kindly tell me I'm so low on the list that I should look elsewhere for services. 

Great. 

I called a few therapists that do not take insurance and the going rate is $150-$200.  That's per session. After the initial intake session. Which is $400-$500. 

What the fuck, yo.

I called my insurance company and they indicated that once I met my deductible they would kick in a portion of the cost for a therapy session. I didn't get to the part where they would help pay because I got stuck at my $5000 deductible. 

Dude. My copay is $30. If I went once a week for 52 weeks-a calendar year-it would cost me $1560. That is nowhere close to five grand!! I don't have five thousand dollars to spend on therapy. That's close to half a year's rent money!

I bit the bullet a few months ago and got a private psychiatrist who doesn't take insurance because my old psychiatrist moved out of state. I pay her $200 for a 30 minute session to write me prescriptions for meds I don't really want to take.

Grrrr.

Today, it got worse. We had a presentation for open enrollment for benefits at my job. In speaking with the rep from the insurance company, I discovered that only $100 of a $200 therapy session will count towards my deductible. Essentially, I'd need to fork out ten grand before the insurance company would help pay. Once I've spent $10K, they will contribute $50 towards a $200 therapy session. 

Did you catch all that math? I had to ask the rep 4 times to explain it to me. 

Let me repeat. What the fuck. 

I'm so annoyed right now. I need a therapy session to work through my inability to find a therapist and the exorbitant cost of therapy. 

My next blog will be about medical marijuana.  

Happy Friday, ya'll.