Free tool from Cima Consulting
Are you ready to open? A free readiness review for your practice or program
Answer 18 questions about what you're opening, your license, your paperwork, your location and how clients will pay. You get the launch package that fits, a realistic number of weeks to your first client, what's done and what's left, and the risks to settle first. With the basics in place, an insurance-based solo practice usually takes about 12 weeks (about 6 if self-pay only), a group about 16, an IOP or PHP about 26 and a sober living home about 8.
Updated October 24, 2026. The same rules our consultants use on a discovery call. Nothing you type is sent anywhere unless you choose to send it.
Take the review
The interactive review needs JavaScript. Without it, use the table below, which gives the package and typical timeline for each kind of practice, and the checklist of basics; or book a free 30-minute call and we'll go through the same questions with you.
Next step: a free 30-minute call to check this against your situation. We'll bring your answers, so you don't repeat yourself.
Talk this review through, freeOr send it with the form belowTimelines at a glance
The package each kind of practice usually starts with, and the typical time to the first client when the license, business, EIN, NPI, CAQH profile, malpractice policy and location are already in place. Every two basics still missing add about a week, because each one sits in front of the credentialing applications.
| What you're opening | Package that usually fits | Typical time to the first client, basics in place | Texas roadmap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo therapy practice | Solo Practice Launch: Complete, $3,450 Self-pay only: Solo Practice Launch: Essentials, $1,950 | about 12 weeks with insurance; about 6 if self-pay only | 62 steps |
| Prescriber practice | Prescriber Practice Launch, $4,950 | about 12 weeks with insurance | 70 steps |
| Group practice | Group Practice Launch, $7,500 | about 16 weeks with insurance | 79 steps |
| SUD program (IOP / PHP) | IOP / PHP Program Launch, $24,500 Planning accreditation or TRICARE: Program Launch + Accreditation, $32,500 | about 26 weeks | 118 steps |
| Mental health IOP / PHP | IOP / PHP Program Launch, $24,500 Planning accreditation or TRICARE: Program Launch + Accreditation, $32,500 | about 26 weeks | 109 steps |
| Recovery residence (sober living) | Recovery Residence Launch, $3,500 | about 8 weeks | 46 steps |
Typical, not promised: state agencies and insurance plans set their own pace. Steps are counted on our Texas roadmaps; other states differ slightly.
The seven basics it checks
The readiness score is the share of these that are already done. They're the items every later step waits on: an insurance plan won't take an application without the NPI, most plans read the CAQH profile instead of a paper application, and that profile asks for your malpractice policy and practice address.
- A license in the state where clients are. Payers credential only clinicians licensed where the client sits, telehealth included. Texas counselors, social workers, MFTs and psychologists are licensed through the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council.
- The business formed (an LLC, PLLC or corporation), filed with the Texas Secretary of State by you or your attorney.
- An EIN, free and online from the IRS. Its legal name must match every application, letter for letter.
- An individual NPI (Type 1), free from NPPES, with the taxonomy that matches the license.
- A CAQH ProView profile, free for providers at CAQH. Most commercial plans read it instead of a paper application, and it must be re-attested every 120 days.
- Malpractice insurance in your own or your practice's name. Many plans ask for $1 million per claim and $3 million a year.
- A place to see clients: an office you have, or telehealth only. For a sober living home, the house.
A recovery residence is checked on three: the business, the EIN and the house. If you have no clinical license because you're an owner or operator, the clinician questions drop out.
How it picks a package
Each kind of practice has a starting package, and a few answers move it. These are the app's own rules, the ones our consultants start from before a discovery call:
| If you answer | The review suggests |
|---|---|
| Solo therapy practice taking any insurance | Solo Practice Launch: Complete, $3,450: 6 plans and billing set-up |
| Solo therapy practice, self-pay only | Solo Practice Launch: Essentials, $1,950 |
| Solo therapy, but your license is PMHNP, FNP, MD/DO or PA | A note that the Prescriber Practice Launch ($4,950) fits better |
| Solo therapy or prescriber with more than one clinician in year one | A note that the Group Practice Launch ($7,500) sets up the group NPI and contracts |
| SUD or mental health IOP/PHP | IOP / PHP Program Launch, $24,500, plus a business plan and projection ($1,250) |
| IOP/PHP planning accreditation, or taking TRICARE | Program Launch + Accreditation, $32,500 |
| Recovery residence | Recovery Residence Launch, $3,500 |
| Taking commercial insurance, Medicare or Medicaid (practices) | Credentialing upkeep afterwards, $49 per clinician a month |
| Taking insurance on a package without billing set-up | Billing set-up, $1,500: fee schedule, clearinghouse, ERA and EFT |
The timeline starts from the track's typical weeks, adds about a week for every two missing basics, and is counted from today. If your target date is earlier, the review says so plainly. For a practice, it suggests opening for self-pay first and adding each insurance plan as it becomes effective; for a program, there's no such shortcut, because a Texas SUD program can't treat anyone until its license is issued.
The risks it flags, and why
| Situation | What the review tells you |
|---|---|
| LPC Associate, LMFT Associate, LMSW or LCDC intern | These licenses usually can't practice independently or be credentialed with most plans. Plan for a supervisor, a group practice, or self-pay under the board's supervision rules (BHEC). Our group launch includes a supervision plan for associates. |
| LCDC planning to see Medicare clients | Medicare doesn't enroll LCDCs as independent providers. Since January 1, 2024 it does pay LPCs (as mental health counselors) and LMFTs (CMS). |
| Not yet licensed in the state | Get the license where clients are first; payers won't credential you without it. |
| Texas SUD program | It needs an HHSC chemical dependency treatment facility license before it treats anyone (Texas Health and Safety Code chapter 464), and payers contract only after it's issued. Our guide to starting an IOP in Texas walks the license step by step. |
| Program taking TRICARE | TRICARE contracts IOP and PHP programs only when they're accredited by the Joint Commission, CARF or COA. |
| Program with a budget under $50,000 | Most new IOP/PHP programs need well over $50,000 to open and carry payroll until the first claims pay, usually 60–90 days after the first admission. Build the projection before you sign a lease. |
| Program planning accreditation | The survey comes after you've served clients for a while; plan on 3–6 months after opening. |
| Recovery residence | No paying, rent discounts or anything of value for referrals to or from treatment programs (EKRA, 18 U.S.C. 220, and the Texas Patient Solicitation Act). Texas doesn't license recovery homes; certification through TROHN is voluntary (HB 299, 2023). See how to open a sober living home in Texas. |
What the roadmap looks like
Behind every result is a dated roadmap: our Texas solo practice roadmap has 62 steps, the group 79, the SUD program 118 and the recovery residence 46, organized in phases from planning to the first 90 days. Each step says who does it (our team, you, or both), any government fee and who charges it, and which steps change often enough that we check them with the agency or plan before relying on them. The review shows the milestones; a client sees every step, with dates, in the client portal.
For a practice, the long pole is insurance: each plan usually takes 60 to 120 days from a complete application, so we file right after the CAQH profile is attested. Price your plans with the credentialing cost calculator, or read how our credentialing service works. For a program, it's the license and then the facility contracts, in that order. When you're ready to run the program day to day, Cima EHR for IOP and PHP programs handles groups, attendance, per diem billing and continued-stay reviews.
Want the roadmap itself, dated from your start? A launch roadmap session ($395) is 90 minutes with a consultant and your written roadmap with dates and fees; its price is credited in full toward any launch package you sign within 30 days.
Want us to carry the roadmap with you?
Every launch package is a flat fee, paid in parts as the work lands, with months of Cima EHR included. Start with a free call; we'll tell you honestly if you don't need us.
Questions
How long does it take to open a private practice in Texas?
With the license, business, EIN, NPI, CAQH profile, malpractice policy and an office or telehealth set-up in place, about 12 weeks to your first insured client is typical, because each plan takes 60 to 120 days. Self-pay only, about 6 weeks. Our private practice guide covers each step.
How long does it take to open an IOP or PHP?
About 26 weeks to the first admission is typical when the basics are in place, and longer when they aren't. The HHSC license and the site come first, then facility contracts, which plans usually start only after the license is issued.
Can I open before my insurance contracts are effective?
A practice can see self-pay clients (with a good faith estimate) and add each plan on its effective date. Claims for a plan's members before that date usually deny. A program can ask a plan for a single case agreement for one client, in writing, before admission.
Can an LPC Associate open a private practice?
Usually not on their own: associates practice under an approved supervisor, and most plans don't credential them. The common paths are a group practice with a supervisor, or self-pay under the board's supervision rules. Check the current rules with BHEC.
Is the review the same as what a consultant would tell me?
It uses the same starting rules our consultants use, so it's a solid first answer. A call adds what a form can't see: your market, your payers' panels, your building and your budget. The recommendation is a starting point, never a promise.
Do you save my answers?
No. The review runs in your browser and nothing is sent unless you send it to us with the form on this page. Please don't include any client's health information.
Sources
- Cima Consulting's readiness review and Texas launch roadmaps (the rules and step counts on this page come from them)
- CMS, Marriage and family therapists and mental health counselors in Medicare
- Texas Legislature, Health and Safety Code chapter 464 (facilities treating persons with chemical dependency)
- Texas Legislature, Occupations Code chapter 102 (patient solicitation); HB 299 (2023) bill analysis (recovery housing)
- 18 U.S.C. 220, the Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act
- NPPES, CAQH ProView, IRS EIN, Texas BHEC, TRICARE, TROHN
Not legal or tax advice: Cima Consulting isn't a law or accounting firm. Rules change; check the current rule with the agency, and talk to a health-care attorney about ownership, contracts and referral arrangements.
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