If you are just getting started in private practice, don’t forget that you will need receipts. Here is the information that you will need to include on your receipt:
- Date of Service,
- Client’s Name,
- Diagnosis,
- Time Spent in Session,
- CPT Codes for the Services You Offer, [link updated 01-08-13]
- Your Fee for Service,
- Amount of Payment,
- Your Professional Name and Credentials,
- Your Phone Number,
- Your Full Address (both office location and mailing),
- Your Mental Health License Number(s),
- Your National Provider Identification Number (often referred to as NPI#), and
- Your Federal Tax Identification Number (often referred to as EIN#).
You can go to office supply stores like Office Depot, to have three-ply copies of receipts made. Or, you can order large quantities through online suppliers like Medical Art Press. If you use other suppliers for printing your receipts for professional services, feel free to suggest them below!
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Hi Tamara,
Are you referring to receipts that we are giving our clients for services? Sort of like invoices?
Yes, Carla, that is what I am referring to. An invoice or bill is what you give to someone to tell them that they owe you money and a receipt is your acknowledgment that a payment has been received.
Does Medical Art Press have receipts specifically for mental health professionals? I looked at the web site and cannot seem to find MH specific products. Thank you.
Hi, Ana. Thanks for dropping back in. Yes, they do have them for psychiatrists / psychotherapists. You may have to call them to find out where they are located on the website. As an alternative, I think you can also choose to create your own and have them opy and pad it for you. Let us know what you end up doing and if you are happy with the results!
Tamara, this is very helpful. Thank you. Do you think this also applies (not to the same extent, but similarly) to therapists providing clinical supervision services?
Roia! Thanks for dropping in here to join the conversation! Yes, I do believe that clinical supervisors should also provide receipts to supervisees. You can create an entirely different receipt for supervision services or simply amend your psychotherapy receipt to include a place for supervision. I have opted to do the latter and include places for “Clinical Supervision,” “Consultation,” and “Training.”
Roia, I also wanted to say that I noticed you included me among your Blogs I Like to Read links on your website. Thank you. I, too, really enjoy your writing . . . it’s very personal . . . unfiltered . . . and reminds me of the need we all have to be self-reflective of our own processes. You’ve unknowingly prodded me to add a section (this weekend!) of psychotherapists’ blogs that I particularly appreciate – starting with yours.
I hope you’ll drop back in often and join the conversations here as we continue to build our community of therapists in private practice!
Thank you Tamara! I wrote and they say that they don’t have any available, but I can have a form customized.
Ana, I’m glad to be of help! I’m looking forward to hearing about your practice and hearing your voice back here with us again!
Since you focus on the cash only practice, I assume that we give the receipt so that the client may bill their insurance? Seems obvious but I wanted to be clear. Thanks.
Gosh, Allen. I think I missed seeing your question until today! So sorry!
And, thanks so much for dropping in to ask for clarification. I give receipts to my clients for several reasons . . . . It’s the professional thing to do. Some may choose to file them with their insurance companies, thus requesting reimbursement. And, they may also wish to file them as tax deductions on their income taxes (as “medical” expenses).
My clients often ask for receipts. Am I suppose the dx,cpt code, npi and my federal tax id which is my social security number to clients? Some of the people I deal are not entirely stable-personality d/o?
Hi, Ky! Welcome to Private Practice from the Inside Out and thanks for asking for clarification. Receipts are used for at least three different purposes. In all cases, you should include your federal tax ID instead of using your social security number. With so much identity theft, using your social security number as your federal tax ID is very risky.
The first reason to give your client a receipt is that it is simply a professional way to document a financial transaction.
The second reason is that some clients will want to use a receipt for tax purposes – filing it as a medical or business expense depending on the work you did with your client. If the receipt is being used for this purpose, you do not need to include a diagnosis, CPT code, or NPI #.
The third reason a client may want a receipt is to obtain reimbursement from their insurance company or from a health spending account for a portion of your fee. If this the case, you may need to include a formal diagnosis, CPT code, and NPI #.
I handle these differences by including my federal tax ID and NPI# on all receipts and include places to fill in a diagnosis and CPT code only as needed.
Ky, I hope this helps and that you’ll check back in here often to join the discussion!
Straightforward and well written, ty for the post. Is it alright to post a number of this on my page if I post a link for this page?
You are always welcome to link back to my posts! Thanks so much for asking!
Of course! I’m always happy to have you link back to my posts!
As usual, I get just as much valuable information from the comments section as in the post. Thanks!
Me, too, Emily! I so love the community here – so willing to share not just their challenges but also their strengths and encouragement and resources, too. If you (or anyone else) knows of another online community for therapists that is this rockin’ great, feel free to let us all know. So far, I think you guys win the collaborative contest!!!! {Written by a proud online mama:)
HI Tamara:
Thanks for all your great work and information. Pardon me if I am uneducated here, but I have read a lot of Lynn Grodski’s materials and she suggests creating a monthly printed receipt. This is less intensive on time and paper. Are you thinking that this is unadvisable in some way?
Amy
Hi, Amy! Welcome to Private Practice from the Inside Out and thank you for offering this suggestion. I am a big fan of Lyn’s and borrow generously from her body of work. Certainly this is a personal preference. For those of us who really struggle with follow through, it is easy to forget to record financial transactions. For that reason, and my personal preference as a customer to get immediate proof of purchase when I pay for something, I prefer to issue receipts when services and payments are rendered. I suspect some of my counseling clients who choose to submit their receipts to insurance companies also appreciate the ability to submit claims ASAP rather than be out the cash for a few extra weeks.
Wondering though – does anyone else out here provide monthly receipts? I can see, Amy that is would be less labor-intensive than writing out weekly statements for sure!
Thanks Tamara, this is very informative. I am going to look into doing the receipts this way.
So happy to be of help, Amy! Have a great weekend!
Tamara,
Do I need to have clients (or myself) sign this receipt as a release of their medical information, or is that insinuated by the fact they (the client) submits the receipt on their own to insurance companies? Thank you!
Sarah, you will need to sign each receipt verifying that you provided the professional service.
Ok, thank you!
Hi Tamara,
Would you consider emailing me a sample of the receipt you use?
I looked on this site – and couldn’t locate one.
I will also use my friend, “Google” 🙂
thank you,
Kate
Hi, Tamara.
I’m new to your blog and new to private practice.
I’m trying to figure out receipts for clients who give me a co-pay. Do you suggest giving the same formal receipt that you outlined in your 5/2010 blog?
Thanks for your wonderful posts!
Kathy, I’m, so sorry! I don’ t know how I missed your comment / question above. Yes, it’s 2015 and I’m still using the same format for my receipts. Thanks for asking!
Hi Tamara,
I have recently come across your website and find it so useful! After 20 years, my husband is going fee for service at his private practice. With DSM changes, ICD changes and Obamacare, it got just too much!!
Question: Regarding the statements that patients can use to file their out of network claims, how do private practitioners deal with CPT codes and Diagnosis? When he becomes out of network, he is planning on using an abbreviated note for his documentation. Say he charges 100 for a med check. The documentation in his note may not qualify for a 99213 or 99214, yet the reimbursement to the client would be different between the two when they filed for reimbursement. Does our statement have to have a CPT code? If so, how does the documentation need to reflect that. Thank you SO much!! Sorry if that sounds confusing!!
Therese, welcome to Private Practice from the Inside Out! It’s great to have your voice here! You might also want to join my Facebook group for mental health providers in private practice. You can find the page here –https://www.facebook.com/groups/PrivatePracticefromtheInsideOut/.
I’m not sure I can adequately answer this in text so if this doesn’t help, feel free to set up an appointment with me for a quick consult. You will likely need a CPT code in order for your client to be able to get reimbursed from his managed care company. And, how much the client gets reimbursed is not ever relevant to how you code your husband’s services. The practitioner will always record exactly what is accurate per the definitions of the current CPT code. In my experience documentation is rarely required for CPT codes so the brevity of the documentation won’t be relevant. Instead, you will code the receipt based on time actually spent face-to-face (unless you are actually talking about writing a report and billing for that), the type and difficulty of the work per the CPT coding definitions.
I hope that helped, Therese!
Hello,
As far as Tax ID# I’m going to open my private practice solo. I use my SSN as tax ID. Will this be an issue when I provide receipt to client?
Wendy, it won’t be an issue for your client; but, it may very well be an issue for you. By using your SSN rather than a government issues EIN, you are opening yourself up to identity theft. I would strongly advise against it.
I have found this website helpful as well: http://www.nymhca.org/Superbill.html and I created my own receipt in word and made copies to fill in the blank as needed.
Hi, thank you for writing this blog. Isn’t it easier and more private to submit an out of network receipt/claim directly to the insurance company through a clearinghouse? If your progress notes are on an electronic system, it is only one click to submit receipts for your patient. The benefits are assigned to the patient, if you are out of network. It seems tedious to go through this every time you have a session. Unless there is a reason not to do this. Thanks in advance for reading this:)
if client receipts contain ICD-10 codes, do clients need to sign consent that they are leaving the office with their diagnosis code?
I am aware that it is necessary for all the information to be on the receipts for reimbursement.
Thank you,
Kim Dunlap , MA, LPC
texas
Hello Tamara, I wondered if you have updated any of this info since this posting? Thank you again for all of your time spent creating this informative and wonderful site!
Karen, I don’t have updated info on receipts at this time. In fact, this is exactly what my own receipts include. Are you looking for something specific?
Hey Tamara,
Just wanted to thank you for taking the time to create this website. Some great info on here!
Tah,
Ray
I use Superbill it has our NPI, TIN and all the information the patients need to submit for reimbursement. Superbill is built into our software (our software is inexpensive).