Practice Policies and Fees

Scheduling Appointments:

To schedule an initial consultation appointment, please fill out the Book an Appointment Form and provide your name, contact information number, and the reason for your request.  If your appointment is urgent you may also email Dr. Murray's Assistant at drmurrayappointments@gmail.com.  Dr. Murray or her assistant will contact you to discuss your needs and possible treatment options along with appointment scheduling. Initial consultation evaluations are typically 90 mins long and sometimes require two full sessions to complete an assessment and to formulate treatment recommendations.  You will be asked to fill out and sign routine forms before your initial evaluation, and will need to provide a credit card number in order to hold the appointment.  You can fax those forms as well to her private fax line.  At the end of the initial evaluation, Dr. Murray will provide recommendations for ongoing treatment with her, or referrals to a higher or more specialized level of care.

Cancellation:

Appointments must be canceled 2 business days in advance of the scheduled time.  Appointments that are not canceled according to this time frame will be billed in full.  Appointments are typically 45 minutes in length.  Please make every effort to arrive on time, as each session must end on time out of consideration for the patient with the next appointment. If Dr. Murray is running behind schedule she will make up your session at the end of the session or at another time. Please note, insurance companies do not reimburse for missed appointments.

Fees and Payment Methods:

A credit card must be kept on file which will be billed in the case of missed appointments.  Payments is due at the time of service either by check or credit card.  For established patients, billing may occur on a monthly basis.

Initial consultation is 90 mins long and costs $1300.00. Follow up sessions are 45 mins in length and cost $550.00

Some long term patients may have 30 min sessions which cost $450.00

Health Insurance:

Like most NY psychiatrists, Dr. Murray is an out-of-network provider, meaning that she does not accept payments from insurance companies.  If you are interested in seeking reimbursement from your insurance company, contact them directly to obtain information about your coverage.  You will want to confirm: 1) if you have a deductible; 2) what percentage of fees are covered (e.g. 70 % of a total number of visits per year); 3) in what time period claims must be filed (this can vary from a couple of months to over a year from the date of service); and 4) what is considered “reasonable and customary” for the zip code 10514, which determines the rate at which they will reimburse you for treatment.  Some companies may request a procedure code in addition to a zip code to determine their reimbursement rate.  Dr. Murray is always happy to provide this information and to do her best to assist in these matters at your request.  Dr. Murray will provide invoices for rendered services.  These forms will have diagnosis codes and description of services rendered.

Medications:

In order for psychotropic medication to be prescribed safely and effectively, regular monitoring for side-effects/adverse reactions is necessary.  Depending on the medication, this can include monitoring vital signs and weight as well as blood work in conjunction with a clinical assessment.  Please discuss with your insurance company which laboratory facilities are considered in network for your insurance policy.  While medication is being increased or decreased, appointments may need to be scheduled at more frequent intervals.  In cases where patients are stable on a dose of medication for a long period of time, less frequent appointments may suffice.   If you run out of medication, Dr. Murray will provide a prescription for a few days worth of medication until you can be seen for an appointment.  Refills by phone for more than a week’s supply of medication are typically not provided.  You will be billed for the time that it takes Dr. Murray to call in new prescriptions and/or filing and calling for Prior Authorization.  When calling or emailing to request a refill, please provide in your message your name, DOB, medication name, dose, and frequency, and the telephone number of your pharmacy.

Privacy:

NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES

Information about patients remains confidential whenever possible. 

Dr. Murray will request either written or verbal consent for Authorization for Release of Information from the patient for any disclosure of patient information. 

Dr. Murray will request permission to remain in contact with the primary care physician or other key healthcare providers, to better coordinate the patient’s care.  Patients may wish to grant Dr. Murray permission to speak with family members, significant others, or teachers about their diagnoses and treatment.   It will be the patient’s (or parents’, for those under 18) whether to permit this contact or not. 

There are rare instances when the law may require a health professional to release information about a patient without the patient’s authorization, such as:

-If the physician has reason to believe that the patient poses a direct threat of imminent harm to self or others
-If the physician has reason to believe that abuse or neglect of a child, elder, dependent, or disabled person is taking place
-If the physician is ordered by a court to use or disclose information in the course of a judicial or legal proceeding. 

Patients have the right to file complaints if they believe their privacy rights have been violated, both to the covered entity and to Health and Human Services.  Seehttp://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/index.html for guidelines.

Phone, E-mail, Text Messages:

Phone is the preferred means of contacting Dr. Murray both for your privacy and your best clinical care.  However, if you would like to communicate by email for routine administrative matters such as scheduling, billing, and medication refill messages, you may sign the email consent agreement in "Office Policies" document on the "Forms" page.  Remember that email and text are not encrypted, and anything you write in them could be compromised.  Therefore, Dr. Murray requests that clinical information or content you wish to keep private be communicated in person or live on the phone.   

If you consent to use email, invoices will be emailed to you using an unencrypted billing service.

Phone conversations and email exchanges >10 minutes in length will be billed at Dr. Murray hourly rate, including calls with family members, significant others, teachers, and clinicians with whom you have asked Dr. Murray to communicate. This also includes pharmacies and insurance companies.  Unfortunately, many insurance companies do not reimburse patients for phone sessions or email exchanges.

Emergencies:

When true emergencies occur, it is appropriate to contact Dr. Murray at any hour.  If you are unable to reach Dr. Murray immediately, please call 911 or go to the nearest psychiatric emergency room.  Leave a message briefly describing the situation along with a contact number so that Dr. Murray can return your call as soon as possible. If medications renewals are needed, please address this with Dr Murray at least 4-5 days prior to the date your medication runs out.  

Vacations:

When Dr. Murray is on vacation, she will arrange to have another physician cover her in case of emergencies.  Contact information for the covering physician will be recorded on Dr. Murray voicemail while she is away.