Why We Don’t Accept Insurance for Marriage and Couples Counseling in Alabama
One of the questions we get most often is:
“Do you take insurance for marriage or couples counseling?”
The short answer is no, we don’t bill insurance directly.
We know that might sound unusual, especially when you’re trying to make a wise financial decision about therapy. But there are good reasons why Sparrow Counseling has chosen to remain private-pay since we opened our doors in 2016.
At the heart of our decision is this belief: you deserve high-quality, confidential care that moves at your pace, not the pace or priorities of an insurance company.
Here’s why we don’t accept insurance for marriage and couples counseling in Alabama, and how that benefits our clients.
1. Insurance Can Compromise Confidentiality
When we bill insurance, we’re required to use an electronic medical record system that transmits information to a third party. According to hipaajournal.com, 2021 was the second-worst year on record for breached healthcare data, with over 44 million healthcare records exposed or stolen.
Every time your information is shared with an insurance company, the risk of a breach increases.
Beyond data security, there’s also the issue of diagnostic disclosure. If you or your child ever needs a federal background check, applies for certain professional licenses, or pursues specific careers (like aviation), that diagnosis can appear in your record.
At Sparrow Counseling, we believe what you say in counseling should stay in counseling. You deserve a space that’s confidential, protected, and truly yours.
2. Insurance Requires a Diagnosis, Even When It Doesn’t Fit
Here’s another important fact: insurance companies require a mental health diagnosis to cover counseling.
That means even if you’re coming in for marriage counseling, the therapist must assign one partner an official diagnosis (like “Adjustment Disorder” or “Depression”) just to justify the claim.
We don’t believe that’s fair or accurate.
Relationships are complex. Most couples who come to therapy aren’t “sick” or “broken”; they’re trying to learn new ways to communicate, reconnect, and heal. We believe couples should be free to seek help without being labeled with a medical diagnosis that can follow them for life.
When you pay privately, you and your therapist get to define your goals, not an insurance company’s checklist.
3. Our Time Is Focused on Giving You the Best Care
Getting credentialed and billing insurance is an exhausting, time-consuming process, filled with forms, waiting on hold, and repeated verification requests.
That’s time we’d rather spend serving you.
By choosing not to work with insurance, we’re able to:
Respond quickly to emails and client needs
Stay up to date on the latest research and trainings
Focus on you, not paperwork
We want to spend our time preparing for your session, supporting your progress, and improving our craft, not arguing with insurance adjusters.
4. Insurance Companies Can Dictate Your Care
It may sound surprising, but insurance companies can, and often do, decide how therapy should go.
They determine:
How many sessions you can have
How long those sessions can last
How often you’re “allowed” to come
We believe that decision belongs to you and your therapist, not a corporation that’s never met you.
For example, if you’re walking through grief, healing from infidelity, or trying to prepare your kids for an upcoming divorce, you might need longer or more frequent sessions for a while. We want the freedom to decide that together, based on your needs, not your insurance company’s policies.
At Sparrow Counseling, we’re fiercely protective of your freedom to choose what’s best for your mental health.
5. Private Pay Counseling Allows for True Flexibility
When insurance isn’t involved, your care can be completely customized.
Need a longer session one week and a shorter one the next? We can do that. Want to switch between in-person and virtual sessions depending on your schedule? Easy.
Private pay gives us the flexibility to create a plan that fits your goals, your season of life, and your budget.
We see counseling as an investment, one that pays dividends in peace, connection, and emotional health for years to come.
Investing in Yourself, Your Relationship, and Your Family
We understand therapy is an investment of both time and money. But think about what’s at stake:
* Feeling more peace and less anxiety
* Communicating more clearly and compassionately
* Experiencing moments of intimacy and being truly seen by your partner
* Building lasting memories with your children and loved ones
Can you put a price tag on that? We don’t think so.
Our therapists aren’t driven by insurance reimbursements; we’re driven by relationships. We spend time outside of sessions reading, training, consulting, and researching to bring you the best care possible.
At Sparrow Counseling, we believe your emotional health and the health of your family are worth that investment.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
If you’ve been searching for marriage counseling in Alabama or couples counseling near me and wondering why some therapists don’t take insurance, we hope this gives you clarity.
Our goal isn’t to make therapy harder to access; it’s to make it more meaningful, confidential, and focused on what truly helps you heal. Ready to get started? Follow these three simple steps:
Reach out to Sparrow Counseling for a free 15-minute consultation.
Learn more about our caring, experienced couples therapists.
Start building the kind of relationship and life you truly want.
Other Services Offered at Sparrow Counseling
At Sparrow Counseling we offer in-person and online therapy in the state of Alabama. In addition to couples retreats, our team specializes in pre-engagement and premarital counseling, couples intensives, teen counseling, family therapy, co-parenting counseling, blended family counseling, discernment counseling, and more in Birmingham, Alabama. Learn more by checking out our FAQs and Blog!
