FAQ

Prairie Health is an online mental health service focused on reducing all barriers to mental healthcare and modernizing treatment. We specialize in helping adults with depression and anxiety get better through online appointments with a therapist or psychiatrist, personalized care plans, and ongoing support, all from the comfort of home.

Prairie Health is available in California to adults (age 18 or older) with depression, mild bipolar, insomnia or anxiety disorders like generalized anxiety disorder, PTSD and panic disorder. For people with ADHD, our team can only prescribe treatment to treat co-morbid anxiety and depression and not the stimulants that are commonly prescribed. (We do not prescribe controlled substances.)

We are not able to support people with the following conditions:
• Borderline personality disorders
• Severe bipolar
• Severe eating disorder(s)
• Severe OCD
• Severe personality disorders
• Schizoaffective disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Suicide attempt(s) in the last 3 years
• Substance abuse
• Unspecified psychosis

We will be expanding to more states and supporting additional conditions over time, so check back frequently.

Prairie was founded to empower everyone to achieve better mental health by reducing all barriers to effective treatment, motivated by personal experiences with mental illness and issues with getting quality care.

In particular, medication is such a key part of treatment for many people, but the one-size-fits-all approach to prescriptions where trial and error is the norm prevents so many people from recovering.

Prairie is committed to providing you the best possible care, which means we only work with vetted, experienced mental health providers.

For medication, we only work with psychiatrists. While both general practitioners, like primary care doctors, and psychiatrists are medical doctors, psychiatrists receive an additional 4 years of specialized training in psychiatry after completing medical school. In addition, psychiatrists only see psychiatric cases, whereas other practitioners see many types of patients, increasing psychiatrists’ ability to provide the best possible care.

For talk therapy, expect to work with licensed psychotherapists with years of experience in helping people feel better and achieve their goals.

Mental healthcare doesn’t start or stop with your medication prescription. Millions of Americans have received effective help with depression and anxiety through psychotherapy. Our highly trained therapists are here for you to receive personal, high-level, online care and therapy from the comfort of your home. We work with therapists who have a proven track record in their field and are sure to provide you with effective, caring, and meaningful therapy.

Care Coordinators are mental health professionals who help guide you along your care journey.

Between your appointments, you can reach out to your Care Coordinator with any questions. This includes adjusting your appointments, medication questions, billing questions and interacting with other members of your healthcare team with your consent.

You have access to your Care Coordinator via text or over the phone for any questions regarding your care Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm.

Learn more about Care Coordinators' important role in this post

Your safety is very important to us. If you are in emotional distress or thinking about harming yourself at any point, please use these resources:

1. Visit: If you are having a medical or mental health emergency, call 911 or go to your local emergency department.

2. Text: The Crisis Text Line provides free, 24-hour, confidential help. Text ‘HOME’ to 741-741 to connect with a counselor immediately.

3. Call: You can call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK to talk with a live counselor 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

There is always help available. We recommend also reaching out to a family member or friend to let them know that you are having these thoughts and ask for help and support.

1. You are able to schedule your appointment with your psychiatrist as soon as possible, often within a matter of days.

2. When you sign up, you have the option to receive a genetic test delivered to you free of charge. Once you receive your genetic testing kit, send us back your saliva sample right away. Your results are typically processed within 2 weeks of the lab receiving your sample.

3. During your first visit (the intake), your psychiatrist will discuss your symptoms and medical history. If your genetic test results are ready (if relevant), your psychiatrist will incorporate them when crafting your personalized treatment plan. This enables them to better tune your prescription dosage and avoid medications your body likely will not process well. 

4. If prescribed, you can pick up your medication at your preferred pharmacy or choose to have it delivered to your door for a flat $15/month per medication. 

5. Continue to meet with your psychiatrist to ensure you are on the right track and treatment is working as expected. Expect more frequent visits if you are starting on a new medication and less frequent visits if your medication is working well.

1. You are able to schedule your appointment with your therapist as soon as possible, often within a matter of days.

2. You will complete an intake form, so that your therapist has more context and can dive into deeper topics more quickly.

3. During your first session, your therapist will review select areas from your intake form and talk through your goals for care. Together, you will formulate a care plan to meet those goals.

4. After this, ongoing meetings with your therapist and routine follow-ups with Prairie’s progress tracking tools will help you stay on the path to recovery.

On your desktop
No additional software is required on your desktop or laptop to use Prairie. We use HIPAA-compliant video conferencing tools to connect you with your care providers. If you use your desktop or laptop for your psychiatry appointments, we ask that you use a camera so you can build a strong connection with your psychiatrist.

On your mobile device
While text will be your primary mode of communication with your Care Coordinator, you will also need to install Google Meet in order to meet your care team over video. Search "Google Meet" in the Google Play Store or App Store to download the app. If you have any difficulties using these tools, reach out to your Care Coordinator for assistance.

Different genes mean different responses to medication. Prairie conducts genetic testing via a spit sample in order to help psychiatrists personalize dosing decisions and avoid medications your body will not process well. By doing so, we minimize potentially serious side effects and ensure your care journey is as smooth as possible. Visit our genetic testing page to learn more about how it works and why we include this in care.

We firmly believe in evidence-based practices, so our genetic testing adheres to well-supported clinical evidence. Specifically, we provide psychiatrists with information to make dosing decisions and to rule out medications, in line with recommendations by the Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP), the College of American Pathologists (CAP), and the Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC).

Prairie does not predict what specific medication(s) will be most effective using genetic testing, since clinical evidence is still limited in that area.

Learn more about how we use genetic testing

Most of our genetic testing reports are generated within 10 to 14 days upon the arrival of your swab sample at our laboratory. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to your Care Coordinator.

You will receive an update over text as soon as your report is generated and ready to be used.

Your personal information is used to provide your test results, and will be stored in a HIPAA compliant manner. While your information might be used to analyze and improve the lab's services internally, your information will never be shared beyond those entities involved in delivering your genetic testing results, without your consent. For example, the laboratory will never sell, lease, or rent your individual-level protected health information to any third party without your explicit consent. The laboratory will also not use your personal information for research purposes without your consent. However, your information might be provided to law enforcement or regulatory authorities when required by law, or to prevent fraud or cybercrime.

Should your psychiatrist decide to prescribe medication, we offer a wide range of FDA-approved, non-controlled medications including SSRIs, NDRIs, SNRIs, and Alpha-Agonists. However, we do not prescribe any controlled substances like benzodiazepines or stimulant ADHD medications (e.g. adderall).

You can ask your Care Coordinator any questions about your medication. Your Care Coordinator will consult with your psychiatrist on your behalf, or you can ask your psychiatrist directly during your next scheduled appointment.

This is ultimately up to your psychiatrist and is dependent upon your situation. Typically, medication is prescribed in smaller quantities until it’s clear that the prescribed medication is the right one for you. The longer you are stable on a given medication, the more months your doctor will prescribe between visits.

If you get your medication delivered with Prairie, all medications will be provided at a flat price of $15 per month per medication, regardless of your insurance plan.

If you decide to pick up your medication at a local pharmacy, your medication co-pay will depend on your insurance plan and benefits.

We primarily use USPS First Class mail to securely deliver your medication, which typically takes 1-3 days. Expedited shipping is available upon request. Because we deliver your medication before your previous prescription runs out, you gain that much more peace of mind.

For our psychiatry services, Prairie accepts Medicare and some commercial insurances like Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield of California and Cigna. For the latest on what insurances we support, please review our Insurance page.

For Prairie Therapy, our therapists are considered out-of-network providers but our Care Coordinators can help you get reimbursements from your health plan.

If you have an insurance plan we aren’t in network with, we can bill your insurance on your behalf, so you can receive reimbursement. Often, this reimbursement is 60-80% back for PPO plans.

You may be able to use your insurance to cover your medication copay if you decide to opt out of medication delivery and use your own pharmacy.

You are solely responsible for payment.

Prairie is considered an out-of-network provider if you have health insurance that we’re not in network with. The good news is that many PPO insurance plans include some benefits for care with out of network providers.

If we are out of network for your plan, we can automatically bill your health insurance for your care. If your benefits apply, you will receive a check reimbursing out of pocket costs, often 60-80%.

If you have questions about your insurance benefits, schedule a free 15-minute consultation. We’d be happy to talk you through your questions.

We can accept HSA/FSA in one of the following ways:

(1) If you have a HSA/FSA account with a connected card, you may use your card as payment when booking an appointment.
(2) If you need to submit a receipt for HSA/FSA reimbursements, we'll make the process easy by providing you with an itemized receipt upon request.

You will be charged either the cash rate or your co-pay as soon as you sign up.

Our cash rates for psychiatry are the following:
1) Intake appointment: $295 for a 50-minute appointment 2) Follow-up appointments: $160 for a 20-minute appointment

Our cash rates for therapy are a $210 for each 50-minute session.

If you are using an insurance plan we support, consult your plan’s benefits to get a better sense of your copay. You can also schedule time with a Care Coordinator to discuss if you need help.

Note: a $50 fee applies for changes or cancellations within 48 hours of your appointment. (See below for details.)

If you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment, we request that you make changes at least 48 hours in advance.

We reserve the right to charge $50 if your appointment must be canceled or rescheduled within 48 hours of your visit, including no-shows. We charge this fee to respect your care provider's time and ensure their time is focused on providing mental healthcare. We appreciate your understanding!

To make changes to your appointment, you can do so using the link in the original appointment confirmation sent to your email or by reaching out to your Care Coordinator.

You can easily schedule and adjust appointments with your providers via our online Patient Portal. Your Care Coordinator can also support you with scheduling if needed.

For psychiatry, your psychiatrist will recommend a follow up date to schedule an appointment with you at the end of your visit. You will be given a link through your Care Coordinator to make this appointment.

For therapy, sessions occur on a weekly basis.