DammitJanet
Well-Known Member
Well thanks to budget cuts all over...guess state and nationally, what little vestige of mental health care we were able to put together for me through this therapy center is being cut out. I had already lost "real" therapy because Medicare refused to pay for it because they wont cover Licensed Professional Counselors. Medicaid does but Medicare wont even though they have the same education as Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)'s. One just has a different bent. Social work heads more toward human services and counselors heads more into the psychological field. Back when the Medicare handbook was written there was only a degree in Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW). It needs to be re-written.
But...the rule is that if medicare wont pay for a covered service and you have medicaid, then medicaid wont pay for it either. Im in a catch 22.
They were getting me in because Medicare does pay for case management so I was able to get some hours a month for that so we just met and called it case management instead of therapy.
Now they have cut case management so Im SOL. I could go find a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) but I have a deep distrust for SW's plus I simply cannot imagine starting from scratch with someone new. I have developed a deep bond with my therapist. I trust her and trust doesnt come easy for me. Im borderline. You just dont do this to a borderline patient.
I have till February.
We have hope that maybe we can get a group going that will be something I can attend. Maybe. Who knows.
There is also the remote possibility that my therapist is trying to get me and another of her clients to put together a presentation to get hired on as a peer support services person. You have to be diagnosed with a serious mental health issue but be working on your own recovery to have this position...lol. Essentially we would be an advocate and helper to other people who are not doing too well. Kind of like what us warrior moms have done all our lives. Going out to help people who have gone into the psychiatric hospital or jails or just need an ear.
I really need to think about this because if I do it, it means I lose SSDI and all that entails. So much to think about. It may be an opportunity that never comes again. Sigh.
Im in tears here thinking about all this.
But...the rule is that if medicare wont pay for a covered service and you have medicaid, then medicaid wont pay for it either. Im in a catch 22.
They were getting me in because Medicare does pay for case management so I was able to get some hours a month for that so we just met and called it case management instead of therapy.
Now they have cut case management so Im SOL. I could go find a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) but I have a deep distrust for SW's plus I simply cannot imagine starting from scratch with someone new. I have developed a deep bond with my therapist. I trust her and trust doesnt come easy for me. Im borderline. You just dont do this to a borderline patient.
I have till February.
We have hope that maybe we can get a group going that will be something I can attend. Maybe. Who knows.
There is also the remote possibility that my therapist is trying to get me and another of her clients to put together a presentation to get hired on as a peer support services person. You have to be diagnosed with a serious mental health issue but be working on your own recovery to have this position...lol. Essentially we would be an advocate and helper to other people who are not doing too well. Kind of like what us warrior moms have done all our lives. Going out to help people who have gone into the psychiatric hospital or jails or just need an ear.
I really need to think about this because if I do it, it means I lose SSDI and all that entails. So much to think about. It may be an opportunity that never comes again. Sigh.
Im in tears here thinking about all this.