I run a private practice. I currently offer psychotherapy for self-payers, privately insured persons, persons insured by the German Armed Forces, the Police, the Federal Railway and the German Post Office. Those with "statutory health insurance" (gesetzliche Krankenversicherung) still have the option of billing for private services via the "cost reimbursement procedure".

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Here I present various forms of cost coverage for psychotherapy (see also https://www.therapie.de/):

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Self-payers: 

In many cases, it is not possible for the health insurance company to pay for psychotherapy or the person seeking help does not even want it.

There are several advantages to paying for psychotherapy yourself:

- No bureaucracy and no long waiting times: as a self-payer, you will receive a therapy place immediately, as you do not have to wait for the approval of reimbursement by the statutory health insurance provider, for example.

- Anonymity or no disclosure of information to third parties (therapy admission, diagnoses, etc.): if the therapy is paid for by the patient, the health insurance company will not find out about it. This in turn can have advantages when taking out other insurance policies.

- No psychological diagnosis necessary: Health insurance companies will only cover the costs of your sessions if you have a mental health diagnosis according to ICD-10. However, not everyone seeking counselling has a mental illness.

This payment method is often used by people in the public sector, e.g. teachers and lawyers.

The costs are based on the schedule of fees for psychotherapists GOP (Gebührenordnung für Psychotherapeut*innen).

My fee for a psychotherapy session (50 minutes) is currently €134,06 € (GOP 812a: 2 x 25 Min, 2.3 x).

A reduced fee of €100.55 (GOP 870, 2.3x) can be charged against proof (e.g. student ID, ALG1 certificate).

The costs of self-paid treatments (psychotherapies not covered by health insurance) are tax-deductible, so you may be able to claim for tax purposes (e.g. as “extraordinary burdens” according to §33 EStG).

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​Reimbursement of costs by private insurance (PKV):

 The costs of psychotherapy are generally covered by private health insurance. This does not apply to the initial consultation, which is billed as part of the probatory sessions without an application. The condition is that psychotherapeutic treatment has been agreed in your insurance contract.

The costs for a 50-minute session are €134,06 € (GOP 812a: 2 x 25 Min, 2.3 x). 

A reduced fee of €100.55 (GOP 870, 2.3x) can be charged against proof (e.g. student ID, ALG1 certificate).

The number of reimbursable sessions and the amount of reimbursement depend on the respective health insurance company and the individual tariff. Private co-payments may apply in individual cases. Please contact the person in charge of your private health insurance at an early stage to clarify the assumption of costs for psychotherapeutic treatment (cognitive- behavioural therapy).

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Reimbursement of costs by "Beihilfe" (e.g. public officials):

Similar to private health insurance, costs are covered within "Beihilfe". The costs for a 50-minute session are €134,06 € (GOP 812a: 2 x 25 Min, 2.3 x). Please contact the person in charge of your private health insurance at an early stage to clarify the assumption of costs for psychotherapeutic treatment (cognitive- behavioural therapy).

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​Reimbursement of costs by "statutory/legal health insurance" (gesetzliche Krankenversicherung) via the "cost reimbursement procedure":

​If you have statutory health insurance and are interested in psychotherapy with me, it is possible that the costs of the therapy will be covered by your statutory health insurance. Most health insurance companies reimburse the costs, so this is still a common and promising way to start psychotherapy (unfortunately, however, there are also health insurance companies that categorically refuse this procedure despite the legal entitlement, in which case I unfortunately cannot help you).

You can apply to your health insurance fund for reimbursement of costs (§ 13 Para. 3 SGB V). I will be happy to assist you with the application.

 

Procedure:

1. We will arrange an initial consultation to get to know each other and understand your problems.  I will also explain to you how to obtain the documents you need for the cost reimbursement procedure. If we decide to work together, I will send you the documents you need from me.

2. We apply for the "trial sessions" (up to 4). Once these trial sessions have been approved, there is a good chance that the entire therapy sessions will also be approved. If we decide in favour of further therapy after these trial sessions, this must be applied for.

3. We apply for further therapy (usually 24 sessions initially). The health insurance companies usually request an expert assessment report for this, which I write and send as an anonymised report to MDK (Medical Service of the Health Insurance Company). MDK decides whether the therapy is approved or rejected. If it is approved, the costs are covered and we can start the therapy immediately.

There are a number of bureaucratic steps to follow in a cost reimbursement procedure:

- Contact the Patient Service by telephone (116117), which is authorised by all health insurance companies to put you in touch with therapists. You can then schedule a consultation with a therapist who is contracted with health insurance providers, who will provide you with the document PTV 11. This document must indicate that you urgently need to start psychotherapy.

- Note down therapists who are currently unable to treat you.

- To be filled out by your general physician or a specialist: a consultation report and a certificate of urgency stating that the treatment is medically necessary and cannot be postponed.

If the application is rejected in the first step, you can file an objection. I can also help you with this. If you have further problems, you can also contact a lawyer (e.g. for health law) and take legal action against decisions. Of course, you can also change health insurance companies, as the cost reimbursement procedure is more successful with some health insurance companies than with others.

 

The initial consultation with me must be payed privately because the health insurance provider only covers the costs after approving them (which we can only apply for after the initial consultation). I have to orientate myself on the scale of fees for psychotherapy (GOP) - according to which the first session is remunerated with 100.55€.

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