Therapy in the Chicago Loop
Higgins & Carter LLC is located downtown Chicago in the historical Monadnock Building. We are a multi-disciplinary mental health practice and have been supporting the community of Chicago since 2010
At Higgins & Carter LLC, we value everyone that comes through our door as a unique individual. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all clients that come to our office, for our staff, and we also extend these values to our other professional relationships.
The origins of the practice began with Ryan Higgins and John Carter while working at a community mental health center in Skokie, IL. Ideas from notebooks and emails unfolded into a reality when we opened for business in 2010. H&C started with a foundational belief that a private mental health office could accept commercial health insurance while also aligning with the values of our previous employment. These values were distilled into a singular focus of accessibility to cost-effective therapeutic care.
The 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) brought about many changes to how health insurance covered mental health. The effect these acts had on the insurance system in the U.S. is debatable, however these acts directly contributed to the expansion of mental health coverage in the U.S., as well as contributed to how private mental health practices, such as ourselves, can provide our services to the community.
Our practice was founded on a vision of increased accessibility and decreased stigma around therapy and mental health. The ACA changed the parameters of health insurance coverage so that plans that had yearly limits on mental health were eliminated, and young adults were able to stay on their family plans to the age of 26. This expansion allowed individuals to continue to receive health insurance coverage at a pivotal life stage that traditionally has transitions and uncertainties.
The ACA also greatly expanded accessibility of health insurance to millions who did not have access previously. It may seem somewhat in the past now, but the option to have access to affordable health insurance outside of an employer offered plan was unchartered territory. This set the stage for our practice to quickly grow from a two person operation to a full staff of licensed counselors, clinical social workers and psychologists.
Since day one, we have accepted every commercial health insurance plan that has been available to our practice. We have never discriminated against health insurance plans that reimburse at lower rates. If your employer offers sub-par insurance coverage, or if you purchase plan off of the exchange, you still deserve access to therapeutic services.
Additionally, we always made simplicity in insurance billing a top priority. We understand that when people reach out to us for support, insurance billing and filing of claims is one of the last things someone wants to figure out on their own. We handle all insurance billing, authorization and claim disputes in-house and on our client’s behalf. We believe this is the only way to operate a therapeutic practice.
Our practice has dependable working relationships with psychiatrists, hospitals, primary care physicians, and university counseling centers to provide coordination of care in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs.
We have built trusted relationships with graduate level training programs in Chicago, and provide therapeutic support to medical doctors in training, lawyers, and graduate level students. These individuals, who are in rigorous educational programs, typically would not seek out mental health treatment without the appropriate avenues already in place.
Over the years, whave developed relationships with multiple employee assistance programs (EAP). These programs, available through an employee’s employment benefits, have allowed us to continue the vision of access to care by providing therapy and training to individuals who may not have sought out mental health care on their own.
Our office has also provided consultation and training to non-profit organizations in the areas of mental health education, program development and intern training and supervision.
When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the entire world in March of 2020, our office quickly adjusted to the stay at home orders. In-person communication and emotional support is the foundation of our profession. It was a moment in time when everyone and every business needed to learn how to adjust, and we were able to continue providing services to existing clients as well as continuously accept new clients who were in need of therapeutic support.
H&C has been in the Monadnock Building (the world’s first skyscraper) since 2010. A building that was built in 1893, and the largest office building in the world at time of completion. A building that has stood the test of time and weathered many storms, in the heart of Chicago Loop, has been an appropriate home for our mental health practice.
We are built on a solid foundation of valuing the individual needs and uniqueness of every person who comes through our door, as well as continual expansion of accessibility to cost-effective therapeutic care. Our staff is dedicated to walking the difficult journey of healing and self-discovery that is the therapeutic process.
As we move into this next chapter, we believe that we have reliably built a solid foundation on values and dedication to our clients that can weather any storm. A post-pandemic world that has undeniably changed work culture and personal relationships, has also allowed our profession to expand into the arena of virtual meetings. Now, a service that may have only been available to those who can physically attend a therapy session has evolved and expanded in ways that allows for the modality of meeting to fit the needs of the client.
We are optimistic about the future of mental health and fortunate for the opportunities we have to work with the vibrant, diverse and enigmatic community of Chicago.
