Thank you for considering Green Counseling Services’ Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills group. Research shows DBT Group therapy can be highly effective in learning to recognize, identify, and express difficult emotions. The intent of this group is to teach you how to cope more effectively with intense emotions which might contribute to negative behaviors or strain in your interpersonal relationships. To ensure you know what to expect, we’d like to give you information regarding this group.

Our DBT Group will meet on Wednesdays from 10am-12pm for 6-months (with an option to repeat the curriculum, totaling 12-month enrollment). The purpose of this group is to learn to identify, recognize, and express difficult emotions in a way that connects you to others but also allows you to effectively express your needs. This group will have up to 10 participants and be facilitated by Tori Brennan. The group may also have other mental health providers observing the program either in person (at our Coralville, IA location) or virtually (via a HIPAA-compliant video conferencing platform). 

Additional details regarding focus of the group are outlined below. 

GROUP SCREENING

All clients interested in participating in the group will complete a 30-minute individual group screening with Tori Brennan (group facilitator) in order to determine level/appropriateness of fit. The cost of this session will be consistent with a typical 30-minute individual therapy session ($99). The cost of this session is typically covered by insurance but please check with your insurance company to verify. The billing code for this screening service is CPT Code: 90832. We recommend that you present this code to your insurance representative when checking on your costs.

Please call the practice front desk to schedule a group screening or contact Group Program Coordinator, Dr. Melinda Green at dgreen@greencounselingservice.com. 

COSTS 

Group therapy is typically covered by most health insurance policies. For this group, we are able to accept insurance from Blue Cross Blue Shield, Health Partners, United Behavioral Healthcare, Midlands Choice, and Cigna insurance panels. Please contact your insurance company to ensure these costs are covered. The billing code for this group service is CPT Code: 90853. We find that two people checking this process helps to ensure we are getting the most accurate payment information. If you do not have access to insurance, the cost for participation is $43 per group session and $99 for the 30-minute individual therapy session to screen for group fit. If planning to attend online at any time, we also encourage you to confirm eligibility for telehealth sessions with your insurance to avoid unexpected denial-fees (some insurers may limit the number of telehealth sessions covered or require prior authorization for ongoing therapy). 

ATTENDANCE

To help ensure the success of the treatment, members are encouraged to attend the full 6-month group. Treatment outcomes are the best when participants adhere to this attendance policy.  Members should notify the practice with 24 hours advance notice if they need to miss any group services and the practice reserves the right to charge a cancellation fee ($25) for each group session missed without advanced notice (except for extenuating circumstances). Continued participation is not allowed if group members miss more than 2 consecutive group sessions or 4 group sessions total.

CONFIDENTIALITY

Members will reveal sensitive information during group treatment sessions. It is an expectation that all members keep the identity of other members and personal information shared during the group confidential.