Mental Health Care in Tucson

Here is a link to a great article from the Arizona Daily Star.
​https://thisistucson.com/guides/article_45c52bb4-f0e4-11ed-b227-8744ed62b366.html
Here's a query we posed to Perplexity on behalf of one of our members.

"Our client is seeking a therapist in Tucson who understands end-of-life autonomy, will respect her wishes regarding the right to die, and accepts Medicare."
Here’s a summary of the most relevant options and considerations based on your request:
Key Considerations
  • Medicare Coverage: There are several providers in Tucson and online who accept Medicare for therapy services. 
  • Understanding of End-of-Life Issues: Therapists specializing in grief, loss, end-of-life, or hospice care are most likely to have experience with clients facing existential and autonomy-related concerns, including those around the right to die
  • Online Therapy: If in-person options are limited, online therapy covered by Medicare is available and can be as effective as in-person care
Local Tucson Providers Accepting Medicare
1. Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona (JFCS)
  • Services: Offers counseling for all ages, including end-of-life issues, grief, and loss.
  • Insurance: Accepts traditional Medicare and has a self-pay option. Sliding scale or free counseling may be available for those who qualify.
  • Contact: [email protected]
2. Thriveworks Counseling & Psychiatry Tucson
  • Services: Offers in-person and online therapy, including grief and loss counseling, with therapists who take most major insurances including Medicare.
  • Approach: Therapists are experienced with life transitions, chronic illness, and trauma.
  • Contact: (480) 568-1896
3. Pima Council on Aging Resource Directory
  • Options: Lists multiple providers, including SMC Counseling & Social Work, LLC, which accepts Medicare and offers a sliding fee scale .
  • Contact: Call and ask for Susie for fee-schedule and Medicare details: (855) 419-1464 .
4. Hospice and Palliative Care Providers
  • Sunset Hospice and TMC Hospice: Both provide emotional and spiritual support for end-of-life decisions, respect patient autonomy, and are covered by Medicare for those with a terminal diagnosis. Hospice teams include social workers and counselors who are experienced in these discussions.
Online Therapy Options Covered by Medicare
1. Total Life Online Therapy
  • Specialty: Tailored to seniors, accepts Medicare, and matches clients with therapists experienced in life transitions, grief, depression, and existential concerns.
  • Contact: 1-800-567-5433 or sign up online.
2. Talkspace
  • Service: Now in-network with Medicare in Arizona, offering online therapy with licensed clinicians familiar with older adults’ unique needs.
3. LifeStance Health
  • Service: Offers both in-person and telehealth therapy in Tucson, with in-network Medicare options. Therapists can be filtered by specialty and insurance.
Important Notes
  • Right-to-Die Discussions: While therapists can provide nonjudgmental support and help process existential distress, they are bound by ethical and legal guidelines. Most will not assist in planning or facilitating suicide, but those experienced in hospice, palliative care, or existential therapy are more likely to engage in open, respectful conversations about end-of-life choices and autonomy.
  • Hospice Care: If your client is facing a terminal illness, enrolling in hospice may provide the most comprehensive support for end-of-life planning, including emotional, spiritual, and practical counseling, all covered by Medicare.
How to Proceed
  • For a therapist who will respect her autonomy and provide support (not crisis intervention): Start with JFCS, Thriveworks, or Total Life, specifying the need for a provider experienced in end-of-life or existential issues.
  • If hospice is appropriate: Contact a hospice provider like Harmony Healthcare, Sunset Hospice or TMC Hospice for full-spectrum support.
Crisis Support: If your client is in immediate distress or at risk of harm, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255.

Your client can reach out to any of these providers and specify her needs for a therapist who is open to discussing end-of-life autonomy and will respect her wishes, while accepting Medicare. If she is not ready for hospice, starting with JFCS or an online Medicare therapist is a good first step.
Citations:
  1. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/az/tucson?category=medicare
  2. https://pcoa.org/ways-we-help/directory/?cat_id=9&cpage=8
  3. https://soulistichospice.org/spiritual-and-emotional-support
  4. https://totallife.com
  5. https://pcoa.org/ways-we-help/directory/?cat_id=148&cpage=2
  6. https://jfcstucson.org/services/counseling/counseling-for-all-ages/
  7. https://www.talkspace.com/blog/medicare-at-talkspace/
  8. https://soulistichospice.org/bereavement-care
  9. https://blog.opencounseling.com/does-medicare-cover-mental-health/
  10. https://lifestance.com/provider/therapist/az/tucson/
  11. https://thriveworks.com/tucson-counseling/grief-and-loss/
  12. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/az/pima-county?category=medicare
  13. https://pcoa.org/ways-we-help/end-life-care-planning.html/
  14. https://thriveworks.com/tucson-counseling/online-counseling/
  15. https://totallife.com/locations/therapists-in-arizona/
  16. https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/mental-health-care-outpatient
  17. https://www.betterhelp.com/online-therapy/
  18. https://www.tucsoncounseling.org/index.html
  19. https://www.tmchospice.com/en/home


 Medicare.gov makes it easy to find and compare providers near you.
This website can help you pick hospitals, nursing homes, renal care facilities.
www.medicare.gov/care-compare/

Not sure what type of provider you need?
Learn more about the types of providers.

Learn about Hospice Care - Both PrePlanning  as well as How to Access it When You Need It.
 https://compassionandchoices.org/news/understanding-and-accessing-hospice-care/

FInding Nursing Home Care Video

From the Kaiser Family Foundation
​https://youtu.be/i1rsEjSKrLs


Renal Care

Updated Data for Dialysis Facility Care Compare (DFCC) on Medicare.gov Now AvailableThe Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is pleased to announce that new data about dialysis facilities are available on Dialysis Facility Care Compare on Medicare.gov—the website where beneficiaries, families, and health care providers can view and compare quality data about dialysis facilities. CMS uses these data, organized into a series of measures, to create two-star rating systems that help ensure safety, quality, and transparency for dialysis facilities and that help beneficiaries make educated decisions about where to get their dialysis treatments.
What’s in the July 2024 Data Refresh?
With the July 2024 data refresh, these measures for dialysis facilities were updated with data from October 2022 - September 2023:
  • Adult and child patients who had enough waste removed from their blood during hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis
  • Adult patients who had too much calcium in their blood
  • Hemoglobin management (Downloadable Data Only)
  • Phosphorus concentrations in the blood (Downloadable Data Only)
  • Adult patients who received treatment through an arteriovenous fistula
  • Adult patients who had a catheter (tube) left in a vein for at least 3 consecutive complete months, for their regular hemodialysis treatments
  • Measurement of nPCR for Pediatric Hemodialysis Patients
  • Patients who were on the kidney or kidney-pancreas transplant waiting list
The HCP Vaccination Measure has also been updated. It is updated quarterly, and the data used in this release is from July - September 2023. 
 Doctors and Clinicians:
Additional Procedures Data Now Available on Medicare.gov Compare ToolAs part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) ongoing effort to inform patients and caregivers about clinicians’ experiences, CMS has added new procedures to the utilization data on the Medicare.gov compare tool’s profile pages for doctors and clinicians.
In January 2024, CMS added the first procedure volume data file with information for 12 procedures publicly reported on Medicare.gov compare tool profile pages for doctors and clinicians:
  1. Hip replacement
  2. Knee replacement
  3. Spinal fusion
  4. Cataract surgery
  5. Colonoscopy
  6. Hernia repair – groin (open)
  7. Hernia repair (minimally invasive)
  8. Mastectomy
  9. Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG)
  10. Pacemaker insertion or repair
  11. Coronary angioplasty and stenting
  12. Prostate resection
The July 2024 release expands the list of procedures to include:
  1. Upper endoscopy
  2. Arthroscopy – upper extremity
  3. Arthroscopy – lower extremity
  4. Varicose vein ablation
  5. Laminectomy/laminotomy (lumbar)
  6. Lower limb revascularization
The procedures added to profile pages were performed by doctors and clinicians for Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage patients in the previous 12 months, after allowing a three-month claim processing period (for example, claims for dates of service occurring between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023, that were processed by April 1, 2024). CMS will continue to add more procedures to Medicare.gov compare tool profile pages periodically, as feasible.
The “Utilization (Procedure Volume) Data Published on the Compare Tool on Medicare.gov July 2024” fact sheet (PDF, 386.64 KB) on the Care Compare: Doctors and Clinicians Initiative page provides the full list of procedures and background information about CMS’ reporting of procedure volume data. The current procedure volume data file is available as part of the doctors and clinicians datasets.
If you have any questions about public reporting for doctors and clinicians on the Medicare.gov compare tool, contact the Quality Payment Program (QPP) Service Center by email at [email protected], by creating a QPP Service Center ticket, or by phone at 1-866-288-8292 (Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. ET).
People who are deaf or hard of hearing can dial 711 to be connected to a Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) Communications Assistant.
For Palliative Care:​
  • https://getpalliativecare.org/
  • ​CAPC's website features clear, comprehensive palliative care information for patients and families. Resources include the downloadable handout titled 'Palliative Care: What You Should Know,' available in English and Spanish.