Once you've found a clinician who can properly diagnose and treat OCD or related disorders, your focus should be on your care, not insurance. However, private insurers deny an estimated 15-22 million mental health and substance use treatment claims each year.
IOCDF's partner, Cover My Mental Health, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping individuals and families overcome insurance barriers to mental health and substance use treatment. They offer free tips, resources, and self-advocacy tools that empower patients to overcome insurer obstacles to care.
Below, find information and resources from Cover My Mental Health to help guide you on your journey to affordable OCD care.
Hear from Joe Feldman, founder of Cover My Mental Health
1. Take action when there are no in-network providers
A common obstacle to mental health coverage is the lack of an in-network provider available in a timely manner, nearby, and with the required competency. Here are tools to document and request a clinician be made available.
- Guidance for talking with an insurer when finding no in-network providers
- Worksheet to document your search for an in-network provider [download]
- Request for in-network coverage of an out-of-network clinician [download]
2. Respond to a denied claim
If your claim is denied as “not medically necessary,” here are steps to document your clinician’s expertise regarding the appropriate clinical plan.
- Medical necessity letters - how this resource supports your access to care
- Medical necessity letter template (provided by a clinician on patient request) [download]
- Cover letter template to submit a medical necessity letter [download]
- Article on medical necessity letters to share with your clinician
3. Persist even if initial efforts fail
If at first you don’t succeed...
