Medi-Cal Psychotherapy

 

CCAH Approved Counselors

(Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Monterey, Merced)

San Francisco Health Plan Approved Counselors

(San Francisco)

LA Care Approved Counselors

(Los Angeles)

Gold Coast Health Plan Approved Counselors

(Ventura County)

Partnership Health Plan Approved Counselors

(See Map Below)

 

Shine a Light Counseling Center has Carelon (Beacon Health Systems) therapists available to provide free adult, teen, and child therapy for clients with eligible Medi-Cal plans. Medi-Cal clients do not have a co-payment when using Carelon approved therapists. This means that people previously without access to mental health counseling can now get it.

We welcome the diversity of people on Medi-Cal, and we understand the challenges of getting good health care when funds are limited. We believe every person deserves good mental health care. We bill Carelon directly, allowing our clients to focus on their healing.

If you need help enrolling in Medi-Cal please visit the Covered California webpage. If you are eligible for Medi-Cal, please enroll. Once you are enrolled, contact us for a psychotherapy appointment at our Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Monterey or San Francisco offices (or via telehealth). If you are already covered by Carelon, in the Medi-Cal  regions listed above (or on the map below), please use the request for services form at the bottom of this page to schedule a counseling appointment.

Medicare

We do not have any Medicare providers at Shine a Light Counseling Center.  Please let us know if you have a Medicare plan, because Medi-Cal will not cover your costs if you also have Medicare coverage.

Eligible Medi-Cal Counties

By Issue

Anxiety & Depression

Relationship Problems

Grief Counseling

Parenting

Trauma Healing

Art Therapy

Anger Management

Substance Abuse

Co-Parenting

Chronic Illness

LGBTQ Identities

Alternative Relationships

To Request an Appointment at Shine a Light or NPCC, please fill out this form. Please note *We respond to inquiries Monday through Friday 8AM to 8PM. All inquiries we receive on the weekends or holidays will be processed the next business day. Thank you for your patience.

Appointment Request

Do you have both Medicare and Medi-Cal coverage?

Have you been seen at Shine a Light previously?

Weekday Availability (Check all possibilities)

Weekend & Evening Availability (Check all that apply)

Virtual or In-person Preference

By which means can we contact you? (Check all that apply)

New Office in San Francisco!

Shine a Light Counseling Center is please to merge with New Perspectives Center for Counseling. NPCC has been serving the San Francisco community for thirty years. Now NPCC is transitioning to become the San Francisco site for Shine a Light. NPCC will retain its name, character and history. For information about NPCC or counseling in San Francisco:

 

New Perspectives Center for Counseling

To Request agency Information about Shine a Light or NPCC, please fill out this form. (this is not the form for new client inquiries)

Emergency Contact

Shine a Light does not provide crisis services. If you have a mental health emergency, call 988 or 911. Or  click here  for more Crisis Resources

Telephone Contact

You can call Shine a Light at 831-996-1222, but we encourage you to use the email forms to the left. If you call, please leave the following:

  • Phone number
  • Preferred location
  • Best times to meet
  • Issue you want help with
  • What insurance you have (if any)

FAX us at: 831-417-0443

Good Faith Estimate

You have the right to receive a “Good Faith Estimate” explaining how much your medical care will cost. Your fee will be set according to a sliding scale, in collaboration with your therapist, prior to your first counseling session. Total costs depend upon the number of sessions you choose to utilize.

If you have private health insurance, please be aware that your costs for therapy may be less by using an in-network provider for your insurance company. This will depend upon your plan's deductible amounts and co-payments. In some cases, counseling at Shine a Light is less costly than using private insurance.

If you hope to use "out of network" benefits through your private insurance, please be aware that many plans will not reimburse for services provided by pre-licensed therapists (most of our staff).

Click here to download a flyer for

Shine a Light Counseling Center