Services & Fees
Step 1: Consultation
We want you to have just what you need, so we offer a free 15-minute consultation before starting any individual services. If you don’t need a consultation, you can book a mini-evaluation below at any time.
Step 2: Evaluation
Evaluations are required for individual services. Pick the one that fits you best!
Mini
For those who know what their goals are, where they have difficulty, and want to hit the ground running!
What does it include?
1 hour basic interview
review of responses on our extensive intake form and executive function skills screener
short written report at the end of the first session
Where?
This evaluation is only offered virtually to clients in DC, Maryland and Virginia
Cost? $259 via credit card
Standard
For those who need a little more help identifying their areas of concern and want to use standardized measures.
What does it include?
1.5 hour standard intake interview
review of supports and challenges present in your usual environments
up to 3 standardized assessments targeting focused areas of concern
written report in 1-2 weeks
30-minute review and Q&A
Where?
Can be offered virtually to clients in DC, Maryland, and Virginia or in your home. For in-home assessments outside our service area, a travel fee applies.
Cost? $1000 if paid in full by check or 2 payments of $518 by credit card.
Comprehensive
For those who want to make sure they have formal assessment of all areas and receive a home program before beginning treatment services.
What does it include?
2 hour extensive intake interview
review of environmental supports and challenges
up to 4 standardized assessments to create a full picture of concerns and primitive reflex testing
written report in 2-3 weeks
home program and recommendations
60-minute review of report and Q&A
Where?
Due to the hands-on assessment involved, this evaluation must take place in-person. For in-home assessments outside our service area, a travel fee applies.
Cost? $1500 if paid in full by check or 2 payments of $777 by credit card.
What Areas Can We Evaluate?
-
Executive Function is the "Air Traffic Control" system in the brain. It is a set of skills that allows us to respond appropriately to situations.
Executive Function skills include:
Working Memory
Time Management
Cognitive Flexibility
Organization
Attention
Emotional Control
Task Initiation
Planning
-
Our motor system allows us to develop functional strength and responsiveness to use tools and interact with our environment. When our motor skills are impaired, it puts an additional strain on our executive function, as our brain must problem-solve around the obstacle of the decreased motor control.
We assess and treat aspects of our motor system including:
Strength
Speed
Coordination
Coordination
Muscle tone
Reflex management
-
Visual Perception is a set of skills that helps us to organize, process, and make meaning of things we see. When this is impacted, we may take more time to process this information or it may not have the same meaning to our brain as to others.
There are many skills included in this area such as:
Visual Discrimination
Visual Memory
Spatial Relationships
Form Constancy
Sequential Memory
Visual Figure-Ground
Visual Closure
-
Our sensory system allows our body to know when a situation or environment is safe and suitable for certain activities and assists us in preparing an appropriate response. For example, if an environment is busy, bright, and loud, our body tells us that it is not a safe place to go to sleep and that we should be prepared to react quickly. If we are receiving information that our environment is threatening, we are in our Fight or Flight system in which we react to protect ourselves. Learning and smart decision-making takes place when we are able to respond from within our Rest and Relax system.
Our sensory system integrates information from several receptor systems:
Visual
Auditory
Olfactory
Tactile
Gustatory
Proprioceptive
Vestibular
-
Part of our development includes creating skills that help us to adapt to our environment. Diagnoses such as ADHD, ASD, TBI, dementia, and intellectual disabilities result in impairments in our skills for navigating life. Assessing adaptive life skills allows us to appropriately scaffold our supports to help these areas mature.
We can assess developmental level in three primary areas:
Communication
Daily Living Skills
Socialization
What Assessments Can We Use?
-
BRIEF-ADHD
BRIEF-P
BRIEF-2 (Home, School, Student forms available)
-
Brunicks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, 2nd Edition
Grip and pinch strength
Primitive reflex testing
-
Test of Visual Perception Skills, 4th Edition
Beery-Buktenica Test of Visual Motor Integration
-
Sensory Processing Measure, 2nd Edition
Sensory Profile
-
Vineland Adaptive Behavior Skills, 3rd Edition
Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, 3rd Edition (ABAS-3)
Assessment of Functional Living Skills (AFLS)
Step 3: Services
Basic Services
The package-free option!
This is for those who can’t commit to the same time every week or don’t need the additional support included in a package. The schedule varies from week to week depending on availability.
48-hour cancellation required
This package is for people who want to commit to consistent progress and need some support between the weekly sessions to meet their goals.
The package includes 1 makeup session for those times that life happens!
Consultation is require prior to starting this package to ensure a good fit.
-
1 hour session including 5 minute consult with family if desired.
Detailed note with recent wins, overview of discussion, and recommendations.
Superbill if requested.
Flexible scheduling. Want two sessions one week and none the next? Let's find a time!
We require 48-hour cancellation or the full session fee will be charged.
-
We use telehealth to make our sessions as convenient and executive-function friendly as possible!
-
$200/session by check or $207 by credit card via Square (sorry, those fees are killer!). We need to receive your check 48 hours before the session if you wish to pay by check.
A superbill is available upon request after each session.
Standard Package
-
10 1-hour sessions
1 free makeup session per package
2 30-minute virtual consultations
personalized recommendations and notes from each session
weekly written and video updates
personalized home program and monitoring
online platform with 1-2 informational posts per week
48-hour response to messages
discounted add-on services
*Evaluation is an additional cost
-
This package includes sessions provided via telehealth. Sessions in-home, in our Takoma garden/clinic, or in Rock Creek Park may be available. Please call us to discuss logistics if you are interested in this option.
-
$2500 pre-pay by check or 2 payments of $1294 by credit card via Square.
Please contact us about this option if you are interested. We sent the payment links individually due to the commitment required for this option.
A superbill is available upon request after each session.
Comprehensive Package
This package is a good fit for people who need more support or are focused on making changes happen fast! We offer texting support between sessions, extra consultations, educational materials sent just to you, and access to our loaner library so you can give some things a try. We also include one makeup session in this package.
Consultation is required prior to starting this package to ensure a good fit.
-
10 in-person or virtual sessions
50-minute sessions
5 minutes post-session for client and family/support system consultation
1 free makeup session per term
5 30-minute virtual consultations
personalized recommendations and notes from each session
weekly written and video updates
personalized home program and monitoring
access to up to 10 loaner tools to try at home
online platform with 1-2 informational posts per week
12-24-hour response to messages
discounted add-on services
*Evaluation is an additional cost
-
This package includes sessions provided via telehealth. Sessions in-home, in our Takoma garden/clinic, or in Rock Creek Park may be available. Please call us to discuss logistics if you are interested in this option.
-
$3200 if paid in full by check or 2 payments of $1656 by credit card via Square
A superbill is available upon request after 5 weeks and at the end of the term.
Add-on services: $200/hr with the Basic Plan, $185/hr with the Standard and Comprehensive Packages
Includes additional sessions, consultations, attendance at meetings, and travel time for in-home visits.
Safe & Sound Protocol: $500
Boring Logistical Stuff… like schedules and insurance
Yeah, details can be a pain… but lets go over them anyway!
Scheduling
Many clients find it helpful to follow the quarters of the local school calendar when purchasing packages due to changes in sports, after-school activities, academic load, and seasonal schedule changes. We may have changes in availability over DC school breaks and holidays. For your convenience, we have links to the school calendars below.
Click below to find links to school quarter calendars… colorful version!
2023-2024 School Calendar
Q1: Aug 28 - Nov 4
Q2: Nov 6 - Jan 27
Q3: Jan 29 - Apr 6
Q4: Apr 8 - June 15
Summer: June 17 - Aug 24
2024-2025 School Calendar
Q1: Aug 26 - Nov 2
Q2: Nov 4 - Jan 25
Q3: Jan 27 - Apr 5
Q4: Apr 7 - June 14
Summer: June 16 - Aug 23
FAQ
-
You do not need a doctor's order simply to receive services. If you are planning to pay cash or use FSA or HSA funds, you may use "direct access" and get started with your services right away.
However, if you plan to submit a superbill to your insurance, you may want to receive a diagnosis and a doctor's order for the services. Please verify the requirements of your insurance provider to ensure you have all the necessary requirements.
-
While an Occupational Therapist cannot give a formal diagnosis, we do select and use the appropriate ICD-10 codes to identify a treating diagnosis. These can include codes that are as inclusive as "unspecified" conditions or may include a formal diagnosis code given by an authorized provider. If you wish to submit your superbill to insurance, you may benefit from having your physician give a diagnosis code to correspond with our superbill information. Please verify the requirements of your insurance provider.
-
The Life Skills Spot is a fee-for-service provider. We do not bill insurance. This fee-for-service model allows us to pursue a treatment program dictated by the needs of the client rather than being constrained by insurance limitations. Many insurance companies restrict the number of sessions covered; if we are in-network we cannot operate outside of the agreement with the insurance company. Insurance companies also may dictate the environment in which services may be provided despite clear evidence of greater benefit from a different environment. In addition, some insurance companies will only cover services for certain medical diagnoses. We believe that it is your choice to pursue a diagnosis or not and that you should have the ability to receive the support needed with or without a "label".
We are happy to give you a superbill, if requested, to submit to your insurance for out-of-network reimbursement. Superbills include all the information needed to seek reimbursement including amounts, dates of services, diagnosis and treatment codes, and all provider information. Many people also have HSA or FSA accounts that can be used to cover services directly, which can help maintain confidentiality.
We recommend that you contact your insurance provider to verify any limitations on the number of visits covered annually, reimbursement rates, and ICD-10 and CPT codes covered. If any reports or treatment notes are required by the insurance provider, clients are responsible for requesting them from The Life Skills Spot and submitting them.
You may wish to use a third-party to manage submission of your superbill. These platforms charge a fee for the service. Some examples are, Thrizer, which has 1-5% fees depending on level of support in claim management, Mentaya, which charges a 5% fee per claim, or Reimbursify, which charges a $3.99 flat fee per claim. Use of these platforms is solely for your convenience and The Life Skills Spot does not benefit in any way from your participation.
-
Research indicates that behavior change for people with ADHD or Autism takes a minimum of 60 days of daily practice. Frequent support is often required to ensure that changes are being implemented and that appropriate problem-solving occurs. Making several progressive changes and building new skill sets usually requires months to ensure that the behavior change sticks and requires several tries to find the right path. We have structured our packages so that our clients can receive the most effective services possible, ensuring there is adequate support, accountability, and flexibility so that some missed sessions can be made up.
Don't worry, we know life happens! If you need to stop services, just give 2 weeks notice and we will give you a pro-rated refund. Our only goal with our packages is to make it easier to keep going than to quit!