The law protects the privacy of all communications between a client and a psychotherapist. In most situations, we can only release information about your treatment to others if you sign a written authorization form that meets certain legal requirements imposed by HIPAA.

There are some situations in which we are legally obligated to take actions and may have to reveal some information about your treatment. These situations are most unusual in our practice. However, we are required to report any evidence of child abuse, strong suspicions of child abuse and/or neglect. We are also mandated to report abuse of handicapped or elderly persons. If we determine that a client presents a serious danger of violence to another, we may be required to take protective actions. These actions may include notifying the potential victim, and/or contacting the police, and/or seeking hospitalization for the client. Finally, if in our judgment, we feel any person is a serious and immediate risk of harming him/herself, we will break confidentiality to ensure the safety of our client. We will notify other family members or the police in order to maintain safety.

If such a situation arises, we will make every effort to fully discuss it with you before taking any action and we will limit our disclosure to what is necessary.

While this written summary of exceptions to confidentiality should prove helpful in informing you about potential problems, it is important that we discuss any questions or concerns that you may have now or in the future. The laws governing confidentiality can be quite complex, and since we are not attorneys, we are not at liberty to give legal advice. In situations where specific advice is required, formal legal advice may be needed.

Please note when we work with kids and adolescents, parents have the right to any and all information regarding their child. Because the presence of trust is important in the therapeutic relationship between your child and the therapist, it is generally best that we do not share specifics of individual sessions with you. However, you have the right and responsibility to question and understand the nature of your child’s treatment and the progress being made. If your child is able to understand the issues of confidentiality, we will discuss with him/her the type of information that will be shared with you. If you have any objections to the manner in which information is shared with you regarding you child, we will need to address and resolve those concerns before therapy begins.

If you will be utilizing your insurance benefits for mental health coverage please review our Payment page for a list of in-network insurance companies and mental health professionals that may be specific to an insurance company.