Discussion:
Ethics and Legal Issues in Counseling
Based on the case below:
Questions:
1. what are the ethical and legal issues in this case?
2. specific ethical standards and state laws that would apply here
3. Are there cases where a therapist might also be justified in omitting or minimizing the diagnosis that is placed in a client's records or submitted to third-party payers? Support your position with references.
Alice case study:
Alice is a therapist who has been licensed for one year and is just starting to build up her private practice. She sees several clients referred to her from the local college where she completed her fieldwork hours and she also works with clients who are contemplating job changes or dealing with basic life transitions.
Some of the clients Alice sees have clear goals for their work in counseling, but they don't have symptoms that are significant enough to meet the DSM IV-TR diagnostic criteria required for receiving reimbursement from their insurance companies. The clients say they really need help paying for their counseling and may not be able to come regularly to sessions if they cannot get reimbursement. In these cases, Alice adds a DSM IV-TR diagnosis such as "Generalized Anxiety Disorder" or "Adjustment Disorder with Depression" to the clients' claim forms so their insurance companies will pay for sessions and the clients will only have to come up with the co-payment.
Alice believes that insurance companies should support all forms of mental health treatment and states that many of these clients would probably develop more serious issues if they were not able to come to their sessions.