Setting my fees as a contractor at an alternative MD's ofc

[walk 112 ??l?]

I'm new to this forum, so I hope I'm doing this right...

With six years experience as a massage therapist, in addition to a few days at my own office each week, I'm going to be the new massage therapist one day a week at an alternative MD's office. She has a small practice (one MD + one receptionist/office manager/billing person) that already offers alternative healing methods--medical acupuncture, Alpha-Stim microcurrent electrical stimulation, and nutritional supplements--as well as traditional allopathic treatments. She does mostly insurance-based treatments, but does have a small perceneforum.xxxe of cash-based patients.

Since she has no experience in the business side of massage therapy (other than getting regular massage herself), I'm trying to set everything up for her, which includes surveying rates in the local massage market, editing an Independent Contractor Agreement that we'll use, and setting the fees that patients pay for massage treatments, as well as the fees that she'll pay me.

My questions are:

1. Should the fees I set for her cash-based massage patients at her office be the same or higher than the average fees at the local massage centers? I wonder if she needs to be "competitively priced" OR would people expect to pay more at a physician's office because the therapist she hires would be expected to be more knowledgeable? Or is a higher rate typical for massage at a physician's office?

2. What is a fair flat rate that I should be paid, when figured as a perceneforum.xxxe of what her patients pay? (I will set it as a flat rate instead of a perceneforum.xxxe so we can avoid any question of "fee splitting.") I've heard of chiropractic offices that make the therapist an employee, then pay them much too little, considering the limited amount of physical work we can do, so I'm looking for a win-win rate.

Thank you for any advice you can share!
Howard

 

[First namebob Jacom]

I think your fees for cash based clients should be the same fees the insurance companies are billed for those clients. The service is the same. As far as how the fees at a doctors office compares to other establishments in the area, I'd just do a survey of other doctors' offices that offer massage.

As far as what you make, it sounds like you have kind of a good position right now. Set your fee and see if she will pay it! Start high, in case she wants to dicker, but know what you are willing to work for and what is not worth your time.

You should be sure she is willing to pay what you are asking before you set up everything else for her. Others have put tons of hours and thought into drawing up contracts and policies, etc. only to not end up with the paying work.

 

[Happy mommy]

I'll be back with more, but my first question is -- are you being paid for the work you are doing setting all of this up? That is a separate job from actually doing massage.

To answer question #2 -- set you fee as what you need to make, not worrying about what "perceneforum.xxxe" it is of what the clients are charged. Build a fee raise schedule into this rate -- that is, for example, you are paid $X for each massage session until whatever date, then for 12 months thereafter you are paid $Y, then in the next 12 months thereafter $Z, etc. (Or tie your pay raise to rate raises in the office, or whatever.)

I can't stress this point enough -- do not worry about what perceneforum.xxxe of the charged fee you are bringing home. Just negotiate your fee (and your ability to raise it) at a level where you are content.