When you choose private pay, your counselor is the only person who knows you are receiving counseling.
When you choose private pay, only your counselor knows you’re in therapy. This choice keeps your information private, avoiding the risks that can come with involving insurance. Today, with growing concerns over how personal data is collected, shared, and sold, keeping control of your mental health information is more important than ever.
Recent research (2023) from Duke University by Joanne Kim sheds light on how data brokers can buy and sell sensitive mental health information without strong privacy protections. Kim found that some data brokers are willing to sell identifiable details—like mental health diagnoses and demographics—without much oversight. “The largely unregulated and black-box nature of the data broker industry…necessitate[s] a comprehensive federal privacy law or, at the very least, an expansion of HIPAA’s privacy protections,” Kim states.
Opting for private pay in counseling means your records stay private. With no insurance involvement, there’s no need to share a diagnosis with third parties or have your information enter insurance databases, where it may become accessible to data brokers. Here’s why private pay can be an excellent choice for protecting your privacy:
Absolute Control Over Your Personal Data
When you pay out of pocket, your counseling information stays between you and your therapist without being shared with insurance networks. By keeping it out of these databases, you reduce the risk of your mental health records ending up in the hands of third parties who may sell or misuse the data. Kim’s report highlights that data brokers are already collecting and selling mental health information, often without consumers even knowing.
Avoiding Stigmatization and Profiling
Using insurance for mental health care often means adding a diagnosis to your medical records, which insurance companies and other organizations could later access. Insurance companies can use these records to build profiles, assess risks, or target advertising, which can lead to unwanted stigmatization. According to Kim’s report, data brokers can make these profiles available to health insurers or other companies, putting your private information at risk of being used without your consent.
Flexibility to Get the Care You Need
Insurance companies frequently require specific diagnoses and may limit the types of treatment they’ll cover, which can restrict your options. Private pay allows you to pursue the kind of counseling that works best for you without a third party dictating the terms. This flexibility lets you and your therapist focus on what’s best for your well-being.
Keeping Your Health History Private
Using insurance means a mental health diagnosis is added to your medical files—a record that stays with you. With private pay, your mental health history doesn’t appear on any insurance record, keeping your health information off the grid.
Prioritizing Your Right to Privacy
Until stronger privacy laws are in place, avoiding insurance in mental health care is the best way to maintain absolute confidentiality. By choosing private pay, you can rest easy knowing your information stays between you and your therapist.
If privacy is a priority for you in mental health care, private pay counseling offers the peace of mind you’re looking for. At Growth Therapy Group, we value your confidentiality and are dedicated to providing a safe and secure environment for your counseling needs. For more information on how private pay counseling can protect your privacy, reach out today at 903.749.4001.
