PhD clinical social work

[deerock]

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hello,

maybe not the proper forum. im wondering if having a phd in clinical social work, along with an msw, and being lcsw, will the phd allow you to make a more money when seeing clients? or do u get reimbursed based on the msw and lcsw?

 

[docma]

Insurance company reimbursement rates are based on the license. In private practice you can charge fee for service and rates wlll vary locally and for that you can charge more as a doctor than as a master's level clinician--but if clients are then putting in for reimbursement there will be a limit based on the license.

 

[PsyDr]

i will add that most licensing boards have a rule about fees being "reasonable"

if you charged outside the U&C of CMS, a client could easily file a complaint.

 

[JockNerd]

My understanding was that a PhD in Social Work is a teaching/research degree, intended to position someone as a prof in a Social Work Dept., and adds nothing directly clinically relevant.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

My understanding was that a PhD in Social Work is a teaching/research degree, intended to position someone as a prof in a Social Work Dept., and adds nothing directly clinically relevant.

That was also my understanding.

 

[docma]

The content and focus of the doctorate would vary by program and could focus on psychotherapeutics. I think what makes this issue so confusing for both practitioners and clients, is that the domain of "authority" and the domain of "expertise" gets all muddled by the separate categories of license and degree. And while psychology is striving to have national benchmarks of competence that are tied to licensure, anyone currently in the field knows that a "doctorate" does not mean folks are equally prepared for a common level of competence in clinical practice. It means someone has completed a certain number of academic hours (and typically clinical internship hours). And the EPPP is a test of content, not clinical skill. Neither letters after name or license translate directly into level of clinical expertise by any means. And there are definitely some highly skilled practitioners, both practicing and teaching, who are LCSWs with either MSWs or PhDs in social work.

 

[psychmama]

The content and focus of the doctorate would vary by program and could focus on psychotherapeutics. I think what makes this issue so confusing for both practitioners and clients, is that the domain of "authority" and the domain of "expertise" gets all muddled by the separate categories of license and degree. And while psychology is striving to have national benchmarks of competence that are tied to licensure, anyone currently in the field knows that a "doctorate" does not mean folks are equally prepared for a common level of competence in clinical practice. It means someone has completed a certain number of academic hours (and typically clinical internship hours). And the EPPP is a test of content, not clinical skill. Neither letters after name or license translate directly into level of clinical expertise by any means. And there are definitely some highly skilled practitioners, both practicing and teaching, who are LCSWs with either MSWs or PhDs in social work.

Agreed. My question is how do the insurance panels look at the issue? Do you get a higher reimbursement rate merely by virtue of having the Psyd or Phd? This is what I've heard, but I'm curious if those already out there practicing can clarify this for me.

 

[pingouin]

Yes, psychologists do get a higher rate than masters-level therapists, however that's an interesting question about the PhD in social work. Honestly, I'm not sure that a SW PhD would be eligible for the higher rate since the MSW (and appropriate licensure) is considered the terminal clinical degree for that field. Generally speaking, although there are a few exceptions, the SW PhD is considered a research and teaching degree, possibly administration. Off the top of my head (N= ~10), I can't think of a SW PhD I know who doesn't have an academic appointment, and none of them are doing therapy.

I'll ask some of my friends who still work in managed care as case managers.

 

[PsyDr]

docma,


i don't know what you mean by "domain".

but i do know authority is dictated by the law. our law largely recognizes education as demonstration of expertise. expertise is also dictated by law.

we are reimbursed by our domain of clinical practice, which is dictated by our education. 8yrs> 6yrs >2yrs.

insurance, and the federal gov't and the AMA and most regional gov'ts, etc recognize psychologists as being experts in the field of behavior. reimbursement rates are based on one's status as a psychologists. not phds/psyd.