How much time goes to insurance questions?

Twenty-five calls and emails a week at four minutes each is about seven hours a month, just on fees and insurance, whether you answer them yourself or your front desk does. A clear fees and insurance page could give back around half of it. Try your own numbers.

Work out my hours Get the fees page template

Count the time.

A rough guess is fine. Everything updates as you type.

Phone calls, voicemails, emails and messages all count.

Include checking someone's benefits, calling them back and writing a reply.

Your front desk's hourly wage plus extras, or what an hour of your own time is worth if you answer them yourself.

50%

An assumption, not a fact. Some questions will always need a person. Move it to what feels right for your practice.

Your result

Time spent on these questions

7.2 hours a month

Cost a year$2,167
Hours a year87
Hours a fees and insurance page could give back, each month3.6
Which is worth, each year$1,083

Get the free fees page template

How we worked this out.

  • Hours a month: calls and emails a week × minutes each, turned into hours, × 52 weeks ÷ 12 months.
  • Cost a year: hours a month × 12 × the hourly cost you entered.
  • Time back: hours a month × the share a fees page could answer.
  • Our assumption: we start at half, because many questions are the same few asked again and again, while some are about a client's own plan and need a person. It's your call: change the slider.

This doesn't count the clients who never call at all, because they couldn't find the answer and chose another practice.

A warm, modern waiting room with plants

What you can do about it.

Put the answers where people look first: on your website.

Fees & insurance page template

Copy, paste, done. Fees, in-network plans, out-of-network benefits, superbills and cancellations, in plain words.

Get the template

Why people call instead of booking

The questions that make people pick up the phone, and how to answer them before they do.

Read the article

What to say about insurance

What a therapy website should say about in-network plans, out-of-network benefits and superbills.

Read the article

Questions.

About this calculator and fees pages.

What counts as an insurance question?

Any call, email or message asking about fees, insurance or what a session will cost. "Are you in network with Aetna?", "How much is a first session?", "Can I get a superbill for my out-of-network benefits?" and "Do you have a sliding scale?" all count.

Why do you assume a fees page answers half of them?

It is a starting assumption, not a measured fact. Some questions are about a client's own plan and will always need a person. Many others are the same few questions asked again and again, which a clear page can answer. Move the slider to whatever feels right for your practice.

How do I count the calls?

For one normal week, make a mark on a sheet of paper each time someone calls or emails about fees or insurance, or ask your front desk to. Count the emails you answer too. Time a few of them. That gives you both numbers for this calculator.

What should a fees and insurance page say?

Your session fees, which insurance plans you are in network with, how out-of-network benefits and superbills work, whether you offer a sliding scale, the Good Faith Estimate for self-pay clients, and your cancellation policy. Our free template walks you through it.

Is anything I type here saved?

No. The numbers stay on your screen and are never sent or stored.

Fewer calls. More bookings.

Send us your website. We'll check whether it answers the questions people call about, and show you what a clear fees page would look like.

Free. See your new homepage before you pay, and owe nothing if you don't love it.