Insurance companies in the USA reimburse therapists for 50-minute individual sessions.
Most therapists bill their sessions in this way, and practice within that time span. But couples sessions require a longer period of time.
"Evidenced-based" couples sessions devoted to science-based couples therapy is not based upon a "50-minute hour." The standard for those practicing in this way is one hour-20 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes.
Look below to see how long each session lasts, and contact us directly to learn how much each clinician charges.
Services Provided | Time Allotted |
Initial Assessment Meeting (both of you) | 2 hours |
Individual Diagnostic Sessions | 45-50 minutes |
Feedback Session | 2 hours |
Ongoing Couples Therapy | 1 hour 20 minutes |
Individual Therapy (when in ongoing couples therapy) | 45-50 minutes |
Shorter Sessions (optional, later in treatment) | 45-50 minutes |
Get Acquainted Meetings (no charge) | 15-30 minutes |
Will these couples sessions be accepted for insurance coverage?
90847 (couples or family therapy with the client present) are 50-minutes each and require that one partner be given a diagnostic label. Therefore, while technically both partners can be in the room, one of the partners, who has been given a psychiatric diagnosis, is the center of treatment.
Prolonged Service codes (99357) has been used as an add-on code (30-74 minutes) but they were never intended as "couples therapy." Z-codes, (Z00–Z99) are diagnosis codes used for situations where patients don’t have a known disorder, and few insurance companies reimburse for any couples sessions that are without a mental illness.
For additional information about proper length of sessions and the issues around insurance reimbursement see: Will My Insurance Pay for Marriage Counseling?