Superbill Template for Psychotherapy
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If you’re looking for a superbill template for psychotherapy, this article provides a free customizable sample superbill for psychotherapy.
Of all the documents in a therapist’s paperwork toolkit, the superbill is often one of the most essential.
This article will define what a superbill is, when to use it, and what to include on your superbill.
Download the free superbill template for psychotherapy that you can save to your practice management software and begin using immediately in your psychotherapy practice to assist clients seeking insurance reimbursement.
What is a superbill for therapists?
A superbill for insurance is an invoice or statement that is specifically designed for out-of-network clients or patients who seek insurance reimbursement for mental health services, such as therapy sessions.
A superbill is an itemized list of services provided, along with the charges and payments, but also includes more detailed information for the insurance plan, like ICD-10 diagnosis codes and CPT codes.
Superbills are only given to clients when:
1. You are NOT a provider for their insurance plan
2. The client has out-of-network insurance coverage
Only clients with PPO or POS insurance plans may have some coverage for out-of-network therapists.
After the client has submitted payment to you for services, you can provide the client with a superbill, which the client then submits to their health plan for reimbursement. In some cases, clients may need to obtain a special claim form from their employer or their health plan to submit along with the superbill.
What should appear on a superbill for psychotherapy?
This article includes a free psychology superbill template, however you’ll still need to know how to fill it out and what to include.
Leaving out even one item may cause the charges to be denied by the health plan, and your client will not be reimbursed.
Like any statement, a superbill should contain basic information about you, your practice, the client, and the list of services provided.
In addition, a superbill will also include insurance-related codes, including CPT codes, for the services you provided.
Here’s what you’ll need to include on a superbill:
Therapist info
A superbill will require information about you: Your name, degree, license, license number, and National Provider ID (NPI).
You will also need the tax ID number of the therapist or practice; this will be your Social Security Number or Employer ID number, if you have one.
A superbill will also require your contact information, including your name, address, phone number, and email address.
If you are an all-telehealth private practice therapist, you may not be sure what address to put down here. It is not recommended that you use a P.O. Box, as this may be rejected by the health plan. Instead, you should use your official office address, even if you were at home for the session. It is not recommended that you use your home address on superbills.
Client info
The superbill should include the client’s full name (as listed with the insurance plan—avoid nicknames) and their date of birth.
Also, include any and all ICD-10 diagnoses you are treating the client for. Note: It can be considered fraud if you did not give the insurance plan the entire clinical picture and withheld some diagnoses.
Session info
The superbill should include information about each session. This information should be listed on a separate line for each session, and must include the session date, the Place of Service code, and the CPT code and telehealth modifier, if needed, for that session.
You must also list your charge for each session, and any amounts paid by the client.
Signature
It is recommended that you sign your superbills, though not all health plans require this. Your signature can be digital.
If you are being supervised, it is important not to make it appear as if your supervisor provided the therapy.
Unless the health plan has told you otherwise, it is a good idea to have the name, NPI, credentials and signature of the rendering provider, as well as the name, NPI, credentials and signature of the supervising provider on the superbill, with your named roles.
For example, this might appear as:
Keep in mind that not all insurance plans cover pre-licensed therapists. Be sure to check with the health plan for coverage rules.
Other optional superbill items
The sample superbill for psychotherapy includes some items that are optional, so feel free to customize it for your practice.
For example, you may want to include the client’s insurance plan information and ID numbers, but this is optional.
The superbill template for psychotherapy also includes an optional diagnosis indicator, which can be used when there are multiple diagnoses and you want to indicate which ones were addressed in the session.
Also, it includes a place where you can identify the number of units of the service provided. However, this is optional, since the health plan will assume you did one unit with psychotherapy unless you state otherwise.
Using a superbill template for psychotherapy
Here are some tips for using a superbill template for psychotherapy:
Using a template makes things easier
Having a sample superbill for psychotherapy to refer to can make the task of giving out billing forms to clients faster and easier.
You may even be able to save a mental health superbill template for each client with their essential client information, so that when you create a superbill, you only need to fill out the session and payment information.
Provide clients with superbills in PDF format
It is recommended that you provide the client with a superbill in a PDF document format. This is so the client cannot alter it or add anything in order to get a higher reimbursement, reducing the risk of potential fraud.
Provide superbills only when you are paid
The final total on the superbill should reflect a client balance of $0. Do not give out a superbill until a client has paid you in full.
Encourage clients to submit superbills frequently throughout the year
Submitting a superbill for a large amount of sessions at one time is more likely to trigger a health plan audit.
Getting into the habit of creating and submitting superbills as the services are provided in a timely fashion also helps clients to discover any issues with their insurance plan’s reimbursement process so they can be addressed early on.
If a client doesn’t ask for a superbill, inquire and educate
Clients may not be aware that they can get reimbursement for therapy with an out-of-network provider. They may appreciate you informing them about this coverage option, which may help to make therapy more affordable for them and increase client retention.
How to use the superbill template
Before you download the behavioral health superbill template, let’s walk through how to use it:
1. Collect the data for the sessions you will need to include on the superbill. If you’ve given a superbill to this client in the past, be sure not to include any session dates that you included on previous superbills.
2. Review the information for accuracy. Be sure you have the correct CPT codes and ICD-10 diagnosis codes, the correct charges, and the correct client payments.
3. Enter the information into your superbill template. This can be done in different ways, depending on whether you use an electronic health record (EHR) for psychologists or other mental health clinicians, what type of EHR you have, or whether you just want a form you can print for clients. You may be able to download the superbill to your computer, fill it out there, and save it for future superbills. Or, you may be able to complete the superbill within your EHR and save it there.
4. Sign the superbill, if you choose to.
5. Send the superbill to the client. This can be done electronically in a PDF Format, or you can print your superbill and hand it or mail it to your client.
6. Keep a copy for your records. Or, make a note of the dates you included on this superbill so you’ll know for the next one.
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