Disability Evaluation by Psychiatrists

[PistolPete]

Hey all,

I was wondering if you guys knew how much Social Security pays psychiatrists for a disability/consultation report? I looked on their website but didn't find information on fees. Is it hard to become an evaluator for them? What does it take? Are the fees different for us since we would do a mental health exam vs a physical exam??

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[birchswing]

Not a doctor, but I do know it's run at the state level.

From:
http://www.vadrs.org/dds.htm

(as an example; I imagine it varies by state)

"CONSULTATIVE EVALUATION: When a decision absolutely cannot be made based on evidence from treating sources, DDS authorizes and funds a consultative evaluation. DDS consultants supply these services according to a fee schedule established by DARS' Medical Advisory committee. The applicant's own treating physician may provide the consultative examination if he/she has the special qualifications and equipment necessary."

 

[vistaril]

Hey all,

I was wondering if you guys knew how much Social Security pays psychiatrists for a disability/consultation report? I looked on their website but didn't find information on fees. Is it hard to become an evaluator for them? What does it take? Are the fees different for us since we would do a mental health exam vs a physical exam??

from the little I know of the system(just what a few people have told me and reading USA today), the system is pretty messed up. And I'm not sure you do a 'mental health exam'. I don't even know that you see the patient. Or is mental health different in that regard? I know internists who have written reports to send to courts that decide, but they didn't see the patient. They just had some records sent to them. And a lot of their cases were not 'in their field' really. I don't think it's always possible to match up filers with the right specialist. They got about 90 bucks per report. So if you want to make money, you do it with volume. In the USA today article I read one internist was submitting like 90 a month.

But maybe my understanding on the matter is limited. I've only heard from a few sources and maybe this was another level of the process.

 

[PsyDr]

Pays less than clinical rates.

 

[notdeadyet]

Pays less than clinical rates.

Ditto this. Disability evals, even chugging them out at a fast clip, pay less than clinical moonlighting you can find.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Disability Evals are all about volume. Given the demand (in most places) for psychiatry, it makes little sense to take on volume AND get paid less than you would doing most other services.

 

[whopper]

Go to the AAPL website and type in disability evaluation. You should get a hit that provides you with a very thorough article.

 

[PistolPete]

Thanks a lot to everyone for your responses, I appreciate it!