Learning Modules
What grad school left out
My program taught me how to sit with a client. It did not teach me how to form an LLC, what a quarterly estimated tax payment is, how to get on an insurance panel, or when to open a retirement account. I learned those things the slow way, one form and one phone call at a time, while building a practice in Oregon.
I believe master's programs, and the degrees beyond them, could do a much better job of teaching us how to build a practice. These modules are my attempt to fill that gap. Each one covers a single piece of the business side of practice: entities and taxes, credentialing and billing, marketing, documentation, telehealth and compliance. They are free and written in plain language, arranged in the order the questions actually come up. Start with whichever question you are facing now, or begin at the top.
This is not legal, tax, or accounting advice. I wrote down what I did and where I checked; a CPA or an attorney gets the final word.
Eric Richers, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), CADC III
Business
Setting up a practice as a business: the entity, the taxes, the books, and saving for later.
Entity & LLCSetting up a practice: my whole paper trail
The order I actually filed everything for a solo Oregon counseling practice, from Articles of Organization to the latest malpractice renewal, with each redacted document attached…
Entity & LLCName and structure for an Oregon LLC (step 1 of 6)
What an LLC does and does not do for a solo therapist, the LLC versus professional corporation question, and how to check a business name for free before you file anything.
Entity & LLCThe registered agent for an Oregon LLC (step 2 of 6)
Every Oregon LLC needs an agent at a street address. Serve yourself for free or pay a service, and know what each choice puts on the public record.
Entity & LLCFiling Oregon LLC Articles of Organization (step 3 of 6)
Filing online with the Oregon Business Registry: what the form asks, the $100 fee, same or next business day processing, and what you have when it is done.
Entity & LLCThe EIN and the Oregon BIN (step 4 of 6)
Get your EIN free from irs.gov, know the online hours, and skip the Oregon BIN until the day you hire. The IRS's own video explains the EIN.
Entity & LLCOperating agreement and bank account (step 5 of 6)
The operating agreement stays in your files, the bank account keeps the LLC real, local registration depends on where you practice, and FinCEN reporting has a caveat.
Entity & LLCThe Oregon LLC annual report and renewal (step 6 of 6)
The $100 annual report on the formation anniversary, what is at stake if it lapses, keeping the registered agent current, and where this series goes next.
TaxesS corp, C corp, or LLC for a therapy practice
How a single-member LLC is taxed by default, what the S election changes, why a C corp rarely fits, Oregon's CAT and PTE-E, the QBI limit for health, and the 2026 estimated tax…
RetirementFinding Financial Freedom and Avoiding Burnout (A Theoretical Approach)
Hey everyone, let's talk about how a solo practitioner might set up their retirement and avoid burnout at a theoretical therapy practice we'll call "CUTI LLC.
BookkeepingBookkeeping basics for a private practice
A separate account, cash accounting, a thirty-minute monthly close, what Schedule C and self-employment tax ask of you, and the two Oregon registrations a solo practice almost…
HiringHiring and payroll taxes for an Oregon therapy practice
Employee or contractor, the forms due before the first paycheck, the federal 941 and 940 cycle, Oregon's combined Form OQ, and the 2026 Oregon rates confirmed on official pages.
Marketing
How clients find a private practice, and what I would do first with little time and less money.
SEOLocal SEO for therapists
What Google says drives local results, how to set up and verify a Google Business Profile, service pages that earn a search, reviews inside a licensed profession, and what a…
SEOSEO, AEO and what to expect from Google now
What Google itself says about AI Overviews, AI Mode and the AEO pitch, why llms.txt and FAQ markup no longer matter, the higher bar for health content, and the honest timeline…
Your websiteTherapy website essentials: pages, accessibility, privacy, hosting
The six pages a practice site needs, W3C accessibility basics, what to keep out of a contact form, where HHS stands on tracking pixels after the 2024 court order, and the domain…
Directories & referralsGetting referred: directories, colleagues, CCOs, counties
What a directory profile is for, building referrals with other clinicians, the Referrals Board and Groups on this site, how OHP routes through Oregon's 15 CCOs, and county…
Directories & referralsWhat a directory profile does for you, with real Google numbers
This directory's own Search Console figures, dated: impressions and clicks for a recent week, nine of the ten most-clicked pages being provider profiles, a five-place ranking…
Budget & expectationsMarketing budgets for a private practice, and what to expect
Where the 7 to 8 percent rule really comes from, what large-company surveys and therapist polls actually measured, the free channel, listing prices read from the vendors' own…
Paid adsGoogle Ads for a therapy practice: campaign shape, budget, and the certification prompt
The shape of a real two-campaign account, a budget with no Google minimum, what the healthcare certification prompt means and why a counseling practice leaves it alone, consent…
Paid adsLegitScript certification: who needs it, who does not, and how it works
Google's own wording on who must certify (drug and alcohol addiction services in six countries, keyword-targeted drug terms, pharmacies and telemedicine), why a counseling…
Social mediaMeta ads and the rules for therapists: Meta's policy, the health-data limit, and your board
Meta's Advertising Standards for health services and personal attributes, quoted; the January 2025 health-data restriction as the trade press reported it; and the ACA code and…
Social mediaInstagram for a private practice: setup, what to post, the ethics line, and a cadence you can keep
Meta's own steps for a professional account and a connected Facebook Page, a bio the board would sign, what to post without a client story, testimonials and comments under the…
Insurance
Getting on insurance panels and getting paid once you are on them.
Credentialing & panelingOregon Insurance Panel Credentialing Guide for Therapists in Private Practice
For LPCs, LMFTs, LCSWs, and Psychologists with an LLC and active website. Verify all links and email addresses before submitting, payer contacts change frequently.
Credentialing & panelingWhat credentialed, paneled, in-network, and contracted mean
Six words clinicians use as one. What credentialing, enrollment, contracting, and paneling each do, why you can be credentialed and still unpaid, and one table that sorts them.
Credentialing & panelingHow to get credentialed, from your NPI to the CAQH profile
The Oregon paperwork sequence: NPI and taxonomy code, the CAQH profile (now DataSpring's Provider Data Portal), the Oregon uniform application, Medicare PECOS for LPCs and LMFTs…
Credentialing & panelingOregon payer contacts and where each application starts
Start links for Oregon's commercial payers, OHP fee-for-service, Medicare, and each CCO, with the first documented step and whether CAQH is required. Links checked September 2026.
Billing & superbillsSuperbills, CPT codes and the Good Faith Estimate
What a superbill must carry, the four CPT codes and three place of service codes an outpatient therapist uses, where Oregon's balance billing law stops, and the No Surprises Act…
Documentation
Notes, records, and the software that holds them.
EMR & EHRSetting up SimplePractice step by step
Sixteen numbered steps to set up SimplePractice for a solo practice, each linked to its help article, with plan prices as listed in September 2026 and the costs that sit on top…
Notes & templatesProgress notes: SOAP, DAP, BIRP and treatment plans
SOAP, DAP and BIRP as common practice, what Oregon's counseling, social work and psychology boards require in a record, the seven-year rule, and the PDS after the 2024 end of…
Practice setupThe Oregon solo practice setup checklist
The order to set up a new solo practice in Oregon: license check, NPI, liability coverage, disclosure statement, HIPAA basics, Good Faith Estimate, records, and the office tools…
Telehealth & Compliance
Seeing clients by video and keeping records the way Oregon rules and HIPAA expect.
TelehealthSun, Sand, and Subpoenas: The Tricky Reality of Telehealth, OHP, & the Thailand Dream
Picture it: the gentle sound of the Andaman Sea lapping against the shore, a fresh coconut resting on the wooden table next to my laptop, and a warm breeze drifting through my…
TelehealthTelehealth in Oregon: rules and setup
Licensure follows the client's location, Oregon is in neither compact, the ACA code via OAR 833-100-0011, the OHP telemedicine rule, place of service codes, and a session setup…
HIPAA & recordsHIPAA basics and record retention for Oregon therapists
Whether HIPAA covers you, the Privacy and Security Rules in plain terms, the risk analysis, BAAs, breach basics, and why HIPAA's six-year paperwork clock is not your board's…