Disability IME Fees

[Psychologist1234]

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What are psychologists charging nowadays for simple SSDI disability IMEs? Posts on this topic here are a few years old, and I imagine the typical rates may have changed over the years.

 

[PsyDr]

SSDI consultative examinations fees are determined by your state's government. Google "(your state) SSDI consultative fees 2025"

I need work at those rates like I need chlamydia.

https://nosscr.org/article/consultative-examination-pay-rates/

 

[Psychologist1234]

The IMEs I’m referring to are referred from private attorney practices to support claimants’ disability claims. From my understanding, these are not set rates and vary by evaluator.

SSDI consultative examinations fees are determined by your state's government. Google "(your state) SSDI consultative fees 2025"

The rates look like complete BS to me.

https://nosscr.org/article/consultative-examination-pay-rates/

 

[PsyDr]

The IMEs I’m referring to are referred from private attorney practices to support claimants’ disability claims. From my understanding, these are not set rates and vary by evaluator.

You're asking for information that varies by evaluator, for a specialty exam where the attorney makes about $2-$6k per case before expenses.

"What is the going rate for an exam that varies by person, location?" That's like asking, "What do women across all ages, education, religions, etc want in a man?"

Shot in the dark: $300 for exam and report with zero testing. Maybe $500. Office full of people acting up because their claim did not go well in round one. Driving away your normal patients. People returning to your office to yell. I wouldn't do it.

 

[Psychologist1234]

Thank you for your estimate. Fortunately, I’ve done many of these in the past and never had any clientele issues like that.

You're asking for information that varies by evaluator, for a specialty exam where the attorney makes about $2-$6k per case before expenses.

"What is the going rate for an exam that varies by person, location?" That's like asking, "What do women across all ages, education, religions, etc want in a man?"

Shot in the dark: $300 for exam and report with zero testing. Maybe $500. Office full of people acting up because their claim did not go well in round one. Driving away your normal patients. People returning to your office to yell. I wouldn't do it.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Doing SSDI claims is a futile setup bound to fail. Pay is <$500/case, often <$350. Even if the interview, record review, & templated out report take 2hr total (wishful thinking), the clinician is making $150-$200/hr. But wait! You still have to pay for assessment/materials cost. Now your hourly is <$125-$175/hr. AT BEST. More likely time bleeds, and it’s 3hr/case, and now your hourly is <$100/hr. Paperwork requests and other time sucks to follow.

I get 1-2 SSDI inquiries per week, and my website goes out of the way to basically tell visitors not to contact me bc I don’t take insurance and I only work in niche areas. The phone calls and VMs are like Groundhog Day. Then there are the endless faxes about SSDI-related documents.

Then there is the increased liability. At least in child custody cases you get paid $$$ to deal w the extra drama, not so w SSDI cases! Unfortunately, the system is still broken, and now even more ppl are trying to apply for disability. It’s not like the current administration will spend $$ to fix the system when there are “starving” billionaires out there demanding more tax breaks for their super yachts.

 

[BuckeyeLove]

SSI evals in my area pay something like 160 bucks per report with a little more with testing. The ONLY way to make money off of it is to do unethical work (i.e., schedule 14 in a 4 hour window, banking on a 66 percent show rate, write up the report in that day, have a psych assistant do most of the work).

 

[Doctor Eliza]

You're asking for information that varies by evaluator, for a specialty exam where the attorney makes about $2-$6k per case before expenses.

"What is the going rate for an exam that varies by person, location?" That's like asking, "What do women across all ages, education, religions, etc want in a man?"

Shot in the dark: $300 for exam and report with zero testing. Maybe $500. Office full of people acting up because their claim did not go well in round one. Driving away your normal patients. People returning to your office to yell. I wouldn't do it.

A friend doing SSA IME's had a person bring in a bag of skin and nails to prove that they were experiencing excoriation. I didn't do IME's but I used to evaluate claims for SSA and so I have read hundreds of them. People behave in some really interesting ways at those exams....

 

[WisNeuro]

No desire to get into SSA stuff here. Kind of a moot point as the lawyers that do these will not hire board certified neuropsychs for these here.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

The lawyers that do SSI cases do the legal equivalent of "stack 'em & wack 'em" bc spending any real time on a particular case costs them $$, so they farm out all of the work.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

As with the others here, my only familiarity is with my state's rates for SSDI evals, which are...not great (i.e., lower than standard clinical rates).

Not sure what people would charge a lawyer who sends their clients for these evals outside the system, but I'm not sure many lawyers would be willing to pay much more than the standard state rates given what they'll probably ultimately collect in return. But I could be wrong.

 

[PsyDr]

As with the others here, my only familiarity is with my state's rates for SSDI evals, which are...not great (i.e., lower than standard clinical rates).

Not sure what people would charge a lawyer who sends their clients for these evals outside the system, but I'm not sure many lawyers would be willing to pay much more than the standard state rates given what they'll probably ultimately collect in return. But I could be wrong.

The maximum SSDI lawyers can make is $6k if it stays local, and $9k if it goes federal appellate. That is before expenses.

How much of that would you be willing to shell out for uncertain outcomes? I know it's not $2k. I doubt it's $1k.

 

[MCParent]

Funny—just yesterday I got cold emailed asking me to do these are a rate that I don’t get out of bed for.

 

[WisNeuro]

Funny—just yesterday I got cold emailed asking me to do these are a rate that I don’t get out of bed for.

Yeah, I usually simply respond with something to the effect of "I'm not interested in a 70+% salary reduction at this point in time" and they usually stop trying right there.

 

[Sanman]

I'm curious, are people getting offered more or less money to do these than the VA disability evals? Those were like $200 per eval or something equally ridiculous.

 

[WisNeuro]

I'm curious, are people getting offered more or less money to do these than the VA disability evals? Those were like $200 per eval or something equally ridiculous.

The "per eval" thing is the rub. If you do an extremely short and incompetent evaluation and use a boilerplate rubber stamp, these can be lucrative. If you do an actual ethically sound evaluation, you're making what you can make simply by doing insurance based clinical work.

 

[Sanman]

The "per eval" thing is the rub. If you do an extremely short and incompetent evaluation and use a boilerplate rubber stamp, these can be lucrative. If you do an actual ethically sound evaluation, you're making what you can make simply by doing insurance based clinical work.

You would have to keep the entire process to 30 min.

 

[WisNeuro]

You would have to keep the entire process to 30 min.

I guarantee you that there are "psychologists" out there doing full DBQs, with report, in about 30/mins a pop. That'd be harder to swing in true medicolegal work as we are routinely asked how long the evaluation was and would get torn apart. Then again, disability cases don't often go to depo or such in my experience.

 

[Sanman]

I guarantee you that there are "psychologists" out there doing full DBQs, with report, in about 30/mins a pop. That'd be harder to swing in true medicolegal work as we are routinely asked how long the evaluation was and would get torn apart. Then again, disability cases don't often go to depo or such in my experience.

I feel like I would need more money to throw ethics out the window. The CIA paid the gitmo guys $81 million. That is retiring on a beach money.

 

[WisNeuro]

I feel like I would need more money to throw ethics out the window. The CIA paid the gitmo guys $81 million. That is retiring on a beach money.

Unfortunately, there are too many psychologists who have a pretty low price for their integrity.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

I'm curious, are people getting offered more or less money to do these than the VA disability evals? Those were like $200 per eval or something equally ridiculous.

IIRC, at my state's rates, I think SSDI would provide slightly better compensation that what sounds like the typical VA disability eval via third-party intermediary.

 

[WisNeuro]

Speaking of integrity, a local npsych clinic run by a diploma miller claims "we realize that treatment at an early stage can stop cognitive impairment" when talking about assessment for dementia. Unfortunately, this kind of garbage is commonplace.

 

[Sanman]

Speaking of integrity, a local npsych clinic run by a diploma miller claims "we realize that treatment at an early stage can stop cognitive impairment" when talking about assessment for dementia. Unfortunately, this kind of garbage is commonplace.

Woohoo! They have cured dementia! I want to know the secret.

The shame is that they could market ethically by saying that early screening and appropriate treatment can delay the onset of symptoms and improve quality of life.

 

[WisNeuro]

Woohoo! They have cured dementia! I want to know the secret.

The shame is that they could market ethically by saying that early screening and appropriate treatment can delay the onset of symptoms and improve quality of life.

Ehh, even that is shaky ground for many of the neurodegenerative conditions.

 

[Sanman]

Ehh, even that is shaky ground for many of the neurodegenerative conditions.

Ehh, shakier than a neurologist throwing aricept at a guy with moderate dementia and being told to come back in 1yr? That seems to pass for standard of care everywhere I have worked.

 

[PsyDr]

I'm curious, are people getting offered more or less money to do these than the VA disability evals? Those were like $200 per eval or something equally ridiculous.

Some joker VA C&P company sent me a text, offering "$500 PER DAY".

Same day some psychologist told me that the criteria for my job was X, and if I believed she met the criteria she made up, I should give her my professional contacts.

I asked both of them if they wanted a foot rub, or to have sex with psygal, while they’re at it.

 

[WisNeuro]

Ehh, shakier than a neurologist throwing aricept at a guy with moderate dementia and being told to come back in 1yr? That seems to pass for standard of care everywhere I have worked.

Some mild evidence it can be useful for vascular issues, and decreases behavioral issues. But yeah, doesn't really slow cognitive decline. Neither do the brain bleed causing newer treatments, either.

 

[WisNeuro]

Some joker VA C&P company sent me a text, offering "$500 PER DAY".

Same day some psychologist told me that the criteria for my job was X, and if I believed she met the criteria she made up, I should give her my professional contacts.

I asked both of them if they wanted a foot rub, or to have sex with psygal, while they’re at it.

"I can haz professional contacts?"

 

[cara susanna]

I'm a sheltered VA lifer, what would a good daily rate for C&P be?

 

[WisNeuro]

I'm a sheltered VA lifer, what would a good daily rate for C&P be?

Couldn't say for daily, easier to estimate for hourly. Personally, $250/hour should be the floor here. Not a rate I'd accept, but much better than teh scammy DBA companies.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Yeah, $300/hr should be the floor for a halfway competent licensed psychologist, but I know many would prob take less.

 

[Sanman]

Couldn't say for daily, easier to estimate for hourly. Personally, $250/hour should be the floor here. Not a rate I'd accept, but much better than teh scammy DBA companies.

Even $250 feels a bit light to me. Medicare national payment amount for 90791 is $167 and I don't have to increase my malpractice insurance or travel to court. I am also much less detailed than any forensic person would likely be.

 

[Sanman]

Some joker VA C&P company sent me a text, offering "$500 PER DAY".

Same day some psychologist told me that the criteria for my job was X, and if I believed she met the criteria she made up, I should give her my professional contacts.

I asked both of them if they wanted a foot rub, or to have sex with psygal, while they’re at it.

I can't help but notice you didn't post their reply to the question. 😏😈

 

[PsyDr]