Joining Coastline Counseling Association
This page will give you additional details about the Association and how we've set it up to mutually benefit LMHCAs transitioning to full licensure and Sherri Lewis, our reliable biller.
What is Coastline?
Coastline is a business that created with my colleague, Laurel Eby. We designed this Association for fully-licensed providers who wanted to be in private practice but felt overwhelmed by the process and unsure of where to start. We think of it as "private practice with training wheels." It shares similar values as the supervision structure that offer, including prioritizing flexibility and autonomy. To learn more, you are welcome to visit our website: Coastline Counseling Association
Why Join?
After supporting supervisees in this transition over the last few years, Sherri and I have learned a lot along the way! We have streamlined this process and have made it as efficient as possible, but recognize that it still takes up quite a bit of time and ongoing communication on all parts. To honor this time and ensure the smoothest transition possible, I recommend that you join Coastline if you plan to bill insurance when independently licensed.
Here are some take-aways from the lessons we've learned:
Here are some take-aways from the lessons we've learned:
- It takes a significant amount of work to onboard people, and Coastline has additional supports for both you and Sherri, which makes it a smoother process.
- In Sherri's experience, she has noticed new LMHCs coming to her with questions that are often practice-related and beyond her billing-related scope. Coastline offers continued communication with me and other clinicians to help you have continued support.
- In general, I have noticed that some new LMHCs can feel quickly isolated or a bit untethered once they are fully on their own. Coastline helps to offer more connection/community as you move forward in your private practice as a fully-licensed clinician.
What Services are Provided?
Transition to Full Licensure
Billing & Financial Services
Credentialing & Insurance
Ongoing Support
Community & Feedback
- Step-by-step support to streamline this process
- Guidance with insurance credentialing
- Continued tracking of clients billed under my contracts and you await your own
Billing & Financial Services
- Continued full billing support via Billing Simplicity, LLC:
- Insurance verification
- Billing for sessions
- Managing copays and coinsurance
- Invoicing
Credentialing & Insurance
- Assistance with credentialing and contracting with insurance companies
Ongoing Support
- Business and clinical consultations
- Group consultation opportunities
- EHR (Electronic Health Record) support
- Educational workshops on private practice topics
- Marketing through the Association’s website
Community & Feedback
- Ongoing consultation with me and/or other Members
- Access to the Membership Lounge (guides, tools, resources)
- Support transitioning to full independence after 300 sessions
Fees & Commitments
Start-up fee: $400 (can be paid in four monthly installments of $100)
Ongoing fee: 20% of gross billed income (this is a discount from 25% for standard Association Members!)
Commitment: Minimum of 300 insurance-billed sessions
- This start-up fee helps to compensate Sherri and her team for time spent submitting contracts and tracking ongoing billing under my own until you have an official start date. This fee is lower than what many billers charge for initial set-up and applications.
Ongoing fee: 20% of gross billed income (this is a discount from 25% for standard Association Members!)
Commitment: Minimum of 300 insurance-billed sessions
- No fixed time requirement - go as fast or slow as you'd like
- Contract is annual but flexible based on session count
- Once completed, you can stay with Sherri and her team or transition to a new biller
Membership Requirements
Use Simple Practice (EHR platform)
Must use the Association’s billing services
- Allow billing team access to your Simple Practice account
- Pay your own Simple Practice subscription
Must use the Association’s billing services
Moving Forward
If you are interested in this stepping stone as part of your transition to independent licensure, we can talk about this in more depth in supervision. I will share resources with you (similar to what I did when we initially started working together) once you're ready to get started.