I work with people who are living with PCOS, IBS, Diabetes, Cardiovascular, and Metabolic Syndrome. My clients are all looking to get their health under control, whether that means weight management, prevention of worsening symptoms, and avoiding medication among other things.

An important first step in starting any kind of ongoing treatment is seeing if you click with the practitioner—whether a doctor, dentist, mental health clinician, or dietitian. Chemistry is important, and you should both want to work together.

In my case, I conduct a complementary 15-minute discovery call with all prospective patients. During this call we discuss details that help me determine whether I feel I can provide you with the expertise required to move you in the right direction. There may be a topic of interest I feel would be better handled by another specialist, or perhaps a visit to a doctor would be a good idea prior to meeting with a dietitian so that we can work together to treat a particular diagnosis. While we’re speaking, I can also help determine if insurance can be used for payment. But the call doesn’t just help me; during this call you are also able to evaluate my methods and schedule and see if you think you want to work with me. You can contact me by phone, email, or via my contact page to schedule your consultation. If we both decide to move ahead, I will begin the intake process by getting you set up in Healthie, the secure patient portal I use, and sending out a link to your intake paperwork.

• Aetna
• Blue Cross Blue Shield (Highmark)
• Cigna (Commercial plans only, not plans purchased through the marketplace)
• Humana
• Independence Blue Cross (also AmeriHealth and Independence Administrators)
• Medicare
• United Healthcare

If you don’t see your insurance carrier on this list, you can check with your insurance company to see if they would reimburse you should you pay for our sessions out-of-pocket.

All insurance plans are different. Be sure to call your Member Services to ask them the following:

1. Is there coverage for CPT codes 97802/97803 (initial nutrition assessment and follow up assessment)? If not, which nutrition counseling codes are covered? Ask the representative to provide you with those codes.
2. Are there any restrictions on medical conditions covered? For instance, some plans only cover nutrition counseling for diabetes. Others are more inclusive. If there is a question about specific diagnosis codes to ask about, please specify this during the discovery call and I can provide those codes to ask about when you call your insurance.
3. How many visits are covered per year? Is this per plan year or calendar year?
4. Is there any financial responsibility associated such as copay, coinsurance or a deductible that needs to be met?
5. Do you cover telehealth sessions? If so, is there a limit to how many you will cover, or is there financial responsibility associated with it?

I also offer a follow-up package available to clients who have exhausted their insurance benefits and require regular, abbreviated check-ins.

Once we agree to work together, you’ll get an email containing a link to Healthie, typically upon scheduling the first appointment. Once you set up your profile, a link to your intake paperwork will allow you to provide required information such as health history via Healthie Smartform. Your intake paperwork will also include a HIPAA acknowledgement form, notice of cancellation policy, and payment information (credit card on file for incidentals. This paperwork usually takes a few minutes to fill out and you should do so prior to the first visit

When you purchase a package, unlimited messaging through the Healthie app is included. Depending on which package you purchase, the unlimited messaging is only available for the duration of that time period. For those who purchase a la carte sessions with me, unlimited messaging is not available, but you will have all of your questions answered once a week.

If you feel that journaling isn’t your thing or would like to keep paper notes, that’s fine! But the tool is there if you would like to use it, and being able to access the journal during a session and discuss actual meals has a big impact on addressing habits that may need to change.

Yes. Virtual sessions are an available option for all of my clients. All virtual sessions are HIPAA-compliant via Healthie. However, please note that currently, most insurance companies with which I am in-network (especially in Pennsylvania) do not offer coverage for virtual counseling. That being said, HSA/FSA funds can be used toward this expense. Superbills are provided to clients to submit for reimbursement.

Wrong. In fact, very wrong! Sometimes you might have an awesome plan, but life gets in the way, and you need someone to help you figure out what’s realistic to stick to given everything else that’s going on. Because we will be able to communicate between sessions using Healthie, I might see early signs of frustration or other changes that make your plan difficult to follow. That would be a good time to move up the next appointment to an earlier date for a pep talk and a change of direction. I will never think you are failing just because it’s not working out the way we anticipated.

But you don’t just need a meal plan. Working with a dietitian gives you the opportunity to learn about food and how it affects your body. Once you have a basic understanding of this and have changed some eating habits, you will be able to choose more healthful options on a regular basis instead of simply relying on a prescribed meal plan.

We will likely discuss meal prepping at some point. This is different from, but can be part of, a meal plan. Meal prep allows you to keep meals/snacks handy so you’re less likely to grab foods incongruent with your nutrition goals.

This year, Keystone 65 has started offering expanded nutrition counseling benefits to members above and beyond the traditional Medicare offering. Keystone 65 members are eligible for four additional visits pertaining to Medical Nutrition Therapy.

Maybe. For Medicare or Medicare Advantage plans, a prescription from your doctor with “Medical Nutrition Therapy” and the pertinent diagnosis code(s) is required to be kept on file.

To take advantage of the Keystone 65 expanded benefits, members will need a prescription (not a referral) from their doctors stating specifically for “Medical Nutrition Therapy.”

For non-Medicare plans, there may be a requirement for a referral, depending on the policy. Member Services will be able to confirm. If we are discussing medical diagnoses and using a medical code for billing, a prescription from your doctor with “Medical Nutrition Therapy” and the pertinent diagnosis code is required to be kept on file.

Referrals require a National Provider Identification (NPI) number. My NPI #s are 1649608340 (group) and 1053752709 (individual). Prescriptions to be kept on file can be faxed to my office at (215) 543-3499.