Can a nurse practitioner bill for psychotherapy?

Asked by: Aryanna Hintz  |  Last update: March 13, 2025
Score: 4.7/5 (62 votes)

MDs, DOs, qualified Clinical Nurse Specialists, Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants are the only providers that may render psychotherapy codes that include an E/M component (CPT codes 90833, 90836, 90838).

Can NP bill for psychotherapy?

One set is the set of codes to report psychotherapy only. (90832, 90834, 90837) While these are most frequently reported by social workers, psychologists and therapists, they can be reported by psychiatrists, psychiatric NPs and PAs if medication management is not performed at the same visit.

Can a nurse practitioner provide psychotherapy?

Specific duties of the psychiatric nurse practitioner can include: Diagnosing and treating psychiatric conditions. Providing individual or group psychotherapy. Counseling patients as they experience mental health crises.

Who can bill psychotherapy codes?

All mental health professionals including psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, and social workers delivering psychotherapy services use the same applicable CPT® codes when billing clients and filing health insurance claims with third-party payers, including Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurance carriers.

Can a nurse practitioner refer you to a therapist?

In addition, they can work with you to create a treatment plan that includes regular therapy appointments. If necessary, your nurse practitioner can also refer you to a specialist.

Can I Perform Psychotherapy as a PMHNP?

27 related questions found

Can FNP treat psych patients?

The answer is yes - and your future role in providing mental health care is more crucial than ever. While psychiatric nurse practitioners specialize exclusively in mental health, FNPs can also play a vital role in diagnosing and treating patients with mental health concerns.

Can a nurse practitioner give a referral to a specialist?

Physician assistants (PAs), nurse practitioners (NPs), and other medical professionals can often provide referrals for specialist care.

Who can bill for 90837?

For CPT code 90837 (psychotherapy, 60 minutes with patient), a physician or other qualified health care professional can report a prolonged service code if the psychotherapy service, not performed with an E/M service, is 90 minutes or longer involving direct patient contact.

Who can access psychotherapy notes?

See 45 CFR 164.501. Psychotherapy notes are primarily for personal use by the treating professional and generally are not disclosed for other purposes. Thus, the Privacy Rule includes an exception to an individual's (or personal representative's) right of access for psychotherapy notes. See 45 CFR 164.524(a)(1)(i).

Can a nurse practitioner bill 90832?

Psychiatric providers with a medical license, like psychiatrists (MDs) or nurse practitioners (NPs) can also use 90832 as long as they're only providing individual therapy in the 30-minute session.

Can a nurse practitioner give a mental health diagnosis?

In primary care settings, family nurse practitioners (FNPs) are often the first to see patients with mental illnesses. FNPs can diagnose and treat patients with uncomplicated mental illness, such as depression and anxiety, within their scope of practice (SOP).

Can nurse practitioners prescribe mental health medications?

A psychiatric (mental health) nurse practitioner (PMHNP) is an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) who has completed additional education and training to specialize in mental health disorders diagnosis and treatment and, thus, can prescribe medication to patients in all 50 states.

Can nurse practitioners do psychological testing?

Psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners often intersect with the roles of psychologists, social workers, and psychiatrists. While all these professionals conduct psychotherapy, only PMHNPs and psychiatrists may prescribe medication, and only psychiatrists are trained to conduct psychological testing.

Can a nurse practitioner do psychotherapy?

Psychotherapy and Counseling: In addition to medication management, PMHNPs often provide psychotherapy and counseling services. They can offer various therapeutic modalities, including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and talk therapy, among others.

What can NPs not prescribe?

Some NPs are also prohibited from prescribing Schedule II drugs like Adderall, methadone, or fentanyl. However, in many states, NPs can prescribe several common medications that doctors also prescribe, such as antibiotics, antifungals, hypertensive medications, and diabetic medications.

Can nurse practitioners bill 90792?

There are two codes for psychiatric diagnostic evaluation. 90791 is used by psychologists, social workers and other licensed behavioral health professional and 90792 is used by psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners and physician assistants, because it includes medical services.

Who writes psychotherapy notes?

Therapist notes are a therapist's private record of their patient encounters. These are the notes that a mental health professional writes down as you talk during your therapy session.

Why are psychotherapy notes excluded from HIPAA?

Psychotherapy notes are treated differently from other mental health information both because they contain particularly sensitive information and because they are the personal notes of the therapist that typically are not required or useful for treatment, payment, or health care operations purposes, other than by the ...

What is required in a psychotherapy note?

Many commenters believed that the psychotherapy notes should include frequencies of treatment, results of clinical tests, and summary of diagnosis, functional status, the treatment plan, symptoms, prognosis and progress to date.

Can Pmhnp bill for therapy?

My license as a PMHNP equips me to do therapy and bill insurance essentially on par with therapists in the states where I practice. Their license does not let them prescribe medicines. Your practice is NOT the norm. You are a contractor.

What is the average reimbursement rate for 90834?

For instance, the reimbursement rate for the CPT code 90834 is $98.39, covering individual psychotherapy sessions lasting approximately 45 minutes, while CPT code 90837, representing longer sessions of around 60 minutes, has a rate of $144.83.

How much is a 60 minute therapy session?

Even if you don't have benefits that cover mental health services, Talkspace is still more affordable than most in-person therapy. The average cost of a traditional in-person therapy session is $175 - $500 per session — a big departure from our plans!

What are nurse practitioners not allowed to do?

Perform Surgery

One of the leading roles doctors can do that nurse practitioners cannot do is perform major surgery. NPs are not surgeons. They can do minor procedures such as lance boils and suture lacerations, but nurse practitioners are not allowed to perform major surgery alone.

What is the highest paying NP position?

Aesthetic NPs earn the highest nurse practitioner salary in America. Salary: Aesthetic Nurse Practitioners earn an average base salary of approximately $138,817 annually.

Why am I seeing a nurse practitioner and not a doctor?

Nurse practitioners are typically not as booked as doctors, and can fit patients in sooner, providing relief without long delays or wait times. Nurse practitioners see a variety of patients, meaning that their knowledge and experiences are varied and may be better suited to creating preventative care plans.