Diana F. Hott, LCSW CEAP
7 Loudoun Street S.W., Suite 310
Leesburg, Virginia 20175
Phone (703) 771-8449   |   Fax (703) 771-9135

New Client Information – General Information

Welcome! My name is Diana F. Hott, and I  have been a psychiatric social worker since 1987. I have a license in clinical social work (LCSW) from Virginia, and belong to the National Association of Social Workers. I am also a Certified Employee Assistance Professional (CEAP) since 1998.

My treatment focus is cognitive, which means treatment centers around how a person thinks about themselves in relation to the world, and how that affects emotions and behaviors. I also use behavioral techniques. This means that actions can be modified by understanding and changing what comes before and/or after them. I have training in the more classical forms of psychotherapy, which allow me to operate in treatment with a well-rounded approach.

I neither prescribe medications nor do psychological testing.  I work with adults and I do not discriminate based on race, age, color or faith.  However, I am not specifically trained to work with infants, senior adults, chemical dependency, Christian Counseling or legal assessments.  Treatment modalities include individual, group, parenting, family and couples work.

My office hours are Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Please Note: On bad weather days, I will have a message on my machine if I am closed. Do not assume I am closed because schools have closed.

Client Rights and Responsibilities

1. You have the right to confidentiality. This means I do not discuss your case with anyone without your specific consent. I respect the federal HIPPA regulations. Clinical information may be faxed, mailed e-mailed or phoned in to your insurance company at their or your request in order to provide a set standard of care and for payment. Confidentiality does not extend to situations where you may be of harm to yourself or others, been involved in sexual, physical or emotional abuse of a child or senior adult, or if a court orders your records to be released. These exceptions are mandated by the Social Work Code of Ethics, state and/or federal law.


2. You have a right to participate in your treatment plan. While therapy cannot guarantee results, outcomes are strongly affected by your participation. Therapy is a joint effort between us. Please ask questions! It is not my role to dictate your treatment goals, but to respectfully work with you to determine appropriate treatment with you. You also have a right to know of various treatment alternatives and choose which modality serves you best.


3. You have the right to terminate treatment.


4. You have the right to be treated with respect.


5. You have a responsibility to pay for treatment, even if the insurance doesn’t reimburse as expected, including co-pays and deductibles.


6. You have a responsibility to contact your insurance regarding co-pays, pre-authorizations and benefits.


7. You have a responsibility to call 24 hours in advance to cancel appointments, or to pay for sessions canceled with shorter notice.

Insurance

I am in the network for Anthem/ BlueCross/BlueShield policies and Cigna. However, not all policies are the same, so please contact your insurance provider to confirm I am a provider under your plan, what are your deductible/co-pays are, and any authorizations that might be necessary. Please keep track of the Explanation Of Benefits sent to you by the insurance company to be sure claims are paid correctly.

I also participate as an affiliate provider for several Employee Assistance providers. Please check with your company’s human resources to see if they have an EAP and if I am a participating provider with them. EAP must be pre-authorized, but are free to employees and their families.

Payment and Fees

The first 60 minute session fee is $200.00, and subsequent 45-60 minute sessions are $120.00. Insurance is accepted including Anthem, BlueCross/BlueShield and Cigna. I will file for these policies directly, and clients are responsible for the copay and/or deductible at the time of the session. For out of network insurance or flexible spending accounts,  a receipt is provided which clients file directly.  In order to keep costs at a minimum, checks or cash are accepted as forms of payment only.  If the account becomes past due, sessions may be discontinued until the balance is paid or arrangements are made. Returned checks will be charged a $25.00 fee.

Missed Appointments

It is understandable that emergencies do come up, or that you may not be able to make an appointment from time to time. I request 24 hours notice for cancellations in order to prepare my schedule or fill the appointment. My answering machine records dates and times so please feel free to leave messages after hours.

If you have an emergency and cannot attend, or you call to cancel in less than 24 hours, I try to offer a make-up appointment based on my schedule’s availability.  If you make the session up within the week of the missed appointment, I do not bill for the missed appointment. Please note that availability is not guaranteed.

However, if an appointment is missed or canceled late for any reason, the insurance company will not pay for any part of that appointment. Therefore, you are billed for the full amount of the session.  This is a standard practice in the mental health community. Your appointment is not double booked, and allows you to have a very short time in the waiting room, if any. It is not easy to schedule another appointment in your time slot, even with 24 hours notice, resulting in a loss of revenue. There is no “tax write-off” for lost income for non-payment, resulting in lost income for me. The policy allows me to keep your and my costs down, and for me to stay in practice.

Emergencies

I do not have 24-hour emergency on call for my office.  If you are experiencing an emergency, call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room. If the situation is important or you are having difficulties that are not an emergency, please call me, leaving me a phone number so I can follow up with you. I can generally schedule clients within 24 hours as needed.  I will return all routine phone calls within 24 hours. I am not available through text messaging or email. The VSee platform has an encrypted, secure chat that can be used to address scheduling changes as needed. It is NOT a method to reach me in a clinical emergency.