How to Generate a Superbill for Out-of-Network Reimbursement

If you don't take insurance but your clients have out-of-network benefits, a superbill lets them submit your sessions to their insurer and get reimbursed directly. You're not billing insurance — you're giving clients a receipt formatted to their insurer's specifications.

First: have your client check their benefits

Before you spend time on this, have clients verify with their insurance company:

• Whether their plan covers out-of-network mental health services
• The reimbursement percentage (often 50–80% after deductible)
• Whether their deductible has been met
• How to submit an out-of-network claim

Some plans don't cover out-of-network at all, and it's better to know before raising expectations.

What you need before you can generate a superbill

Four things must appear on every superbill — if any of these are missing, the insurer will reject the claim:

• National Provider Identifier (NPI) — a free 10-digit number from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Apply at nppes.cms.hhs.gov if you don't have one.
• License number — provisional and intern licenses are fine; use whatever your state issued.
• Employer ID Number (EIN) — obtained free from the IRS. Do not use your Social Security number.
• CPT procedure codes — the billing codes for the services you provided.

Common CPT codes for mental health

Code	Service
90791	Initial intake / psychiatric diagnostic evaluation (60+ minutes)
90834	Individual therapy (38–52 minutes)
90837	Individual therapy (53+ minutes)
90847	Family therapy with patient present (50+ minutes)

Place of service codes

• 02 — telehealth
• 11 — office

A few things to get right

Payee must be the client, not you. The superbill instructs the insurer to reimburse the client directly. Make sure the payee field has the client's name.

Include a diagnosis code. Insurers require an ICD-10 diagnosis code on the superbill. If you haven't diagnosed your client, you'll need to do so before generating one.

Template

Download the Word template below, fill in your provider information once, and then update the client details and session dates for each billing period.

Alternatives

If you use practice management software like SimplePractice or TherapyNotes, check whether it can auto-generate superbills monthly — most can, and it saves time once your client list grows.