INFORMATION FOR NEW CLIENTS
Jim Moyers, MA, MFT
Berkeley Office: 2424 Dwight Way (between Dana and Telegraph), Suite 1, Berkeley, CA 94704
(Berkeley address is the mail address for both offices)
Hayward Office: 1345 B Street (between Third and Fourth), Hayward, CA, 94541
Phone: 510-843-2424 for both offices
Fax: 520-843-2423 for both offices
Web Site: www.jimmoyers.com
email: jimmoyers@mac.com
I am licensed by the California Board of Behavioral Science as a Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT), license #MFC21697. I graduated in 1983 from John F. Kennedy University with a masters degree (MA) in transpersonal counseling psychology and have been licensed with a psychotherapy practice since 1986. Despite the title of my license, I work primarily with adult individuals and couples.
My usual fee is $110 per session and is due at the time of the session unless we make other arrangements. If $110 is more than you can afford, we can talk about the possibility of a reduced fee. I am a provider for Alameda County MediCal and a few private insurance plans. If you will be using your insurance benefits or other third party payer, our financial arrangements will be made accordingly You should be aware that you will be liable for any deductible or co-pay that your insurance requires. You should also be aware that if a third party, such as a health insurance plan, is paying for your therapy, it will require that I provide a clinical diagnosis, and may dictate the frequency and duration of our meetings. At a minimum I will need to furnish some information, such as dates of our meetings, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment plan, to the insurance company. While the use of such information by insurance companies is governed by state and federal law, I cannot be responsible for how they may use it. If I am not a provider for your insurance, I will be happy to provide a statement for you to submit for reimbursement from your insurance or health savings plan, but you will need to pay me directly.
Sessions are usually scheduled on a weekly basis and are fifty minutes long. If you need to cancel a scheduled appointment, I ask that you notify me by at least the night before or I will charge the full fee for the missed appointment. I do make exceptions for emergency situations, but a late cancellation means that I have an empty hour that I cannot fill on short notice.
You may feel free to discuss anything with me. Psychotherapy is a place where feelings are talked about in order to better understand them. The client, not the therapist, is the focus of therapy. For this reason, I do not meet with clients outside of my sessions with them and limit the information that I disclose about myself. However everything that occurs in psychotherapy, including feelings you may have about me or our work together, is important and I will support you in exploring any ideas and feelings that may come up.
All information you share with me, including the fact that you are in therapy with me, is legally confidential and will not be disclosed to anyone without your express permission. There are, however, some exceptional situations in which California law mandates the disclosure of otherwise confidential information. These are: 1. When there is a serious threat of violence; 2. A serious threat of suicide; 3. A reasonable suspicion of child, dependent adult, or elder abuse. In such cases my legal and ethical obligation to ensure the safety of clients and others overrides the usual restrictions on disclosure of information. More detailed information about how I safeguard your privacy in accordance with federal (HIPPA) and California law is contained in my Privacy Practices statement. Please let me know if you would like a paper copy of my Privacy Practices statement.
You may leave a message for me at the above number at any time. If you need to reach me quickly, my cell phone number (510-684-6433) is included in the outgoing voice mail message for my office phone. While I can’t promise that I will be available immediately, I regularly check my voice mail and will get back to you as soon as possible.
