HTML Preview Insurance Panel Appeal Letter page number 1.
Insurance Panel Appeal
Ms./Mr./Dr. Whomever,
I understand that you have a tightly managed network and that your
panel is currently closed to new providers. However, my experience &
expertise in eating disorders and sexual trauma are needed on your panel.
As I’m sure you are aware, treating people suffering from eating disorders is
a specialty. Those without proper training and experience jeopardize clients’
recovery. In my experience, many clinicians “check the box” for eating
disorders when presented the opportunity thinking the disease process
mimics that of addiction, which they may have more experience in. They do
not know best practices, have working relationships with dietitians and
physicians, or have connections within the eating disorder treatment
community to connect clients with groups. In my conversations with members
of the eating disorder treatment community in Asheville, many of the
providers have small, part time private practices while also working at the
treatment centers in the area. Many of these practices stay full as a result of
little availability. Eating disorders are the most fatal mental illness. As a
result, it is vital that adequate and timely treatment is available. With
knowledgeable, evidence-based treatment, the time it takes to recover is
shortened, thus saving time & money for both the patient and the insurance
company. I have also been told by area clinicians that Asheville is in need
of therapists who treat survivors of sexual trauma, a population I have been
working with since 1998.
Before moving to Asheville, I had a private practice in Seattle from
June 2011-June 2014. I have been on the Board of Directors of the Puget
Sound Chapter of the International Association of Eating Disorder
Professionals since fall of 2011 during which time I served as Secretary. This
year I was granted the Certified Eating Disorder Specialist (CEDS) by the
International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals, a distinction that
takes years to earn. Prior to opening my practice in Seattle, I was the Eating
Disorder Treatment Team Coordinator at the University of Georgia. I worked