Using Insurance for Eating Disorder Therapy in California

Many Insurance Policies Accepted for Eating Disorder Counseling

It’s bad enough to struggle with an eating disorder, but figuring out how to afford eating disorder treatment is another hassle. For many, this is a barrier to getting help.

One of the missions of our practice is to increase access to evidence-based therapy for eating disorders. As such, we are contracted with several different insurers in California.

Therapy with Anthem Insurance in California

We are in-network with most Anthem Blue Cross plans, including HMO and PPO plans.

Please note that in California, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California are two different companies. We ARE in network with Anthem Blue Cross—we are only in network with Blue Shield Cal PERS and no other Blue Shield or Magellan plans.

If you have a PPO Blue Cross Blue Shield plan from another state, we are likely in-network. For Blue Cross HMO plans from other states, we are usually NOT in network. We are usually out-of-network with Federal Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO plans.

We also accept Anthem UC SHIP Insurance for students insured through the UC system, including UCLA, UC Irvine, UCSD, UCSB, UC Davis, UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, and UCSF.

Therapy With CalPERS Blue Shield Insurance in California

As of  February 10, 2025 we will be in-network with Blue Shield of California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), which provides health care benefits to California state, school, and public agency employees.

Therapy With Aetna Insurance in California

We are in-network with most Aetna plans nationally.

Meritain plans use the Aetna network, meaning we are also in network with Meritain. We are in-network with USC students insured through Aetna Student Health.

Therapy With Anthem Medi-Cal in California

We are in-network with Anthem Medi-cal which is a Medicaid provider for low-income people in Los Angeles through LA Care–as well as San Francisco.

Therapy With Carelon Insurance in California

We are contracted with several Carelon plans, formerly Beacon Partnership, which is a Medicaid umbrella for the following behavioral health plans:

• LA Care Health Plan
• CareMore
• LA Care PASC
• San Francisco Health Plan
• Covered California.

This insurance covers people in fourteen counties in Northern California— Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Marin, Mendocino, Modoc, Napa, Shasta, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma, Trinity and Yolo. It also includes the Central Coast counties of Merced, Monterey, Santa Cruz Counties, and LA County.

Therapy with Kaiser Insurance in California

We have a specialty contract with Kaiser that allows us to see clients from Southern California who have an eating disorder and receive a referral from the eating disorder case manager at their local Kaiser.

If you are interested in trying to get a referral, you need to first see a therapist or doctor at your local Kaiser who can refer you to the Eating Disorder Case Manager.

Therapy With Lyra in California

Lyra is an employee assistance plan that offers counseling benefits through many larger employers in California. Lyra contracts with two of our therapists.

Therapy Using Out-of-Network Benefits

If you are insured by an insurance company not listed above, we are likely NOT in network. You may still, however, be able to get partial reimbursement if you have “out of network” benefits. We can give you a superbill—a specific document required by an insurance company — that allows you to seek reimbursement for an out-of-network provider. Sometimes, if we are not in-network but are the most appropriate referral for you, you may be able to ask for a Single Case Agreement or a Network Gap Exception.

How Does Insurance for Eating Disorder Therapy Work?

For information on using any of the above insurances, please contact our practice manager. We can look up your insurance and help clarify whether insurance will cover your treatment and any required costs for you.

How Much Does It Cost?

It depends! Every insurer and plan is different! You can call the number on the back of your insurance ID card. As well, our office staff would be happy to run a benefit check. We invite you to learn more about our fees and the process of using insurance.

Get Help for Your Eating Disorder in California Using Insurance

We believe that all people deserve access to quality and culturally sensitive and size-inclusive care for eating disorders and disordered eating. We look forward to supporting you on your journey to recovery. Contact us now to get help with your eating disorder and to verify your insurance.