A new mental health care center in Bangor, Maine, Therapy for the People, has got a mission that recognizes LGBTQ people have specific concerns that therapists must understand if their practice is going to be successful. The new center’s goal is to offer care effectively, efficiently and affordably to LGBTQ people.
“We’re seeing people appreciate that they don’t have the burden of having to educate their therapist [on these needs],” Noah Krell, a licensed social worker at the facility, told the Bangor Daily News for a Feb. 23 report.
According to BDN:
There are 1,700 active licensed social workers in Cumberland County, and many are affirming of the LGBTQ community. But Therapy For the People flags its support front and center in its overall design and business model, recognizing the elevated need for health care among its community as well as their own profession’s checkered history.
“Queer people have higher rates of estrangement from family of origin, and they are not always given equal access to housing or employment.” said Dani Fazio, one of three social workers who founded the space this month. “All of that impacts someone’s ability to have financial capital in their lives, and often it impacts access to health care.”
Since therapy is all about reducing stigma, the fact that clients don’t have to worry about their identity or sexuality being understood is a big draw. …
A 50-minute session with [the facility’s therapists Craig] Cardamone, [Dani] Fazio or Krell costs $120-125, typical for the region. They each accept MaineCare, in addition to private insurance and offer payment plans on a sliding scale for those who need it.
Cardamone said the group’s basic principle is about reducing oppression, which can require some creative financial flexibility to ensure people get what they need. Each said they set aside a certain number of hours per week to see clients in their community who can’t pay the full amount.
Access to health care is one of the most pressing national concerns in the country. In Cumberland County, there are several nonprofits and integrated health care providers available to the public that offer low-cost therapy for the uninsured or underinsured, or for people whose health care plans have exorbitant deductibles.
But those models also come with certain restraints, such as lengthy waitlists, and limits on the number of sessions. Clients are also assigned a therapist, sometimes an intern, who may not be a good match and who might not understand the full spectrum of experience for LGBTQ people.
While therapy sessions won’t necessarily come as cheaply as they do with certain low-cost providers, Therapy for the People hope its model fills the specific needs of its community with accessibility in mind on a case-by-case basis.
“Body-positive, fat-positive, sex-positive, kink-positive, polyamory-allied, sex worker-allied — that’s what therapy for the people is,” said Dani Fazio. “Come as you are.”
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