Disallowed Treatment Modalities

Applicability

Therapymatch, Inc., d/b/a as Headway, and its affiliates and subsidiaries and all of its associated Professional Corporations (PCs), including but not limited to all current and future PCs (collectively, “Headway,” “we,” “us,” or “our”). 

 

Our Policy

Headway permits only treatment modalities and interventions that are evidence-based, clinically appropriate for behavioral health care, and—when services are submitted for payer reimbursement—recognized and supported by major payers, professional associations, and applicable licensing bodies.

Providers may not deliver, promote, advertise, document, or bill for interventions that fall outside recognized standards of behavioral health practice, are not intended to diagnose, treat, or manage behavioral health conditions as defined by the DSM-5 or ICD-11, or are deemed non-reimbursable, inappropriate, or unsupported by payers.

This prohibition includes, but is not limited to, alternative, spiritual, energy-based, pseudoscientific, or non-clinical practices lacking credible scientific evidence, as well as interventions intended to treat non-behavioral health conditions (e.g., general medical, cosmetic, or aesthetic services).

Headway does not permit the provision or promotion of substance-assisted psychotherapy on its platform, including psychotherapy in which psychoactive or psychedelic substances are intentionally used as part of the therapeutic intervention, whether administered by the provider or used by the patient during sessions associated with Headway.

Headway’s decision to limit platform services to evidence-based, payer-supported behavioral health treatments reflects its commitment to patient safety, clinical integrity, regulatory compliance, and adherence to payer contracts and professional standards.


 

Definitions

• Behavioral Health Treatment: Interventions intended to diagnose, treat, or manage mental health or substance use conditions as defined by the DSM-5 or ICD-11, or to address side effects directly related to behavioral health treatment.
• Evidence-Based: Supported by credible scientific research demonstrating safety and efficacy and recognized by professional associations, licensing bodies, and/or payers.
• Non-Behavioral Health Interventions: Services primarily intended to treat physical health conditions, cosmetic or aesthetic concerns, or other non-behavioral health purposes.
• Adjunctive Intervention: A supportive or complementary practice used in conjunction with, and subordinate to, an evidence-based behavioral health treatment, and not intended to function as a standalone therapeutic service.
   

General Expectations for Providers

1. Providers may only deliver treatment modalities that are supported by credible evidence of safety and efficacy and fall within the scope of accepted behavioral health practice.
2. Providers may not offer, promote, advertise, document, or bill for unsupported, non-evidence-based, or non-reimbursable treatment modalities on the Headway platform.
3. Providers must ensure that all services billed through Headway’s payer contracts are eligible for reimbursement under applicable payer guidelines and consistent with evidence-based behavioral health care.
4. Providers may not conduct, advertise, or document interventions primarily intended for physical health, cosmetic, or aesthetic purposes. This prohibition applies to the treatment or management of non-behavioral health conditions and does not preclude providers from specializing in or serving patient populations with medical, physical, or other non-behavioral health diagnoses, provided that all services delivered through Headway remain limited to behavioral health treatment.
5. Providers may not market or promote prohibited interventions to Headway patients through profiles, patient communications, or other materials associated with the Headway platform.
6. Providers who believe a patient may benefit from non-behavioral health services or prohibited modalities (including substance-assisted psychotherapy) must refer the patient to an appropriate external provider outside of Headway.
7. All services must be delivered without discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, or other protected characteristics. Providers may not use therapy to promote religious or political ideology, treat patient identities as pathological, or engage in exclusionary practices.
8. Providers may not advertise or promote the prescribing of controlled substances on their Headway profile or in any patient-facing materials associated with the platform. This restriction does not apply to 1) buprenorphine and buprenorphine-containing products (e.g., Suboxone) when prescribed in the context of evidence-based treatment for opioid use disorder; or 2) esketamine (Spravato) when prescribed consistent with FDA-approved indications for treatment-resistant depression.

Prohibited Treatment Modalities

The following interventions are explicitly prohibited on the Headway platform. Providers may not deliver, promote, advertise, document, or bill for these practices under any circumstances.

A. Conversion-Adjacent or Coercive Practices

1. Conversion therapy or any practice aimed at changing an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity
2. Coercive or shame-based behavioral interventions related to identity, sexuality, or expression

3. Purging behaviors or facilitation of eating-disorder–related compensatory behaviors

    

B. Discredited or Non-Evidence-Based Psychotherapeutic Practices

1. Primal therapy
2. Past Lives Regression therapy
3. Rebirthing therapy
4. Recovered memory-based therapy
5. Hypnoanalysis
6. Neuro-Linguistic Programming
7. Attachment holding therapy
    

C. Substance-Assisted or Psychoactive-Facilitated Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy or counseling interventions that involve the intentional use of psychoactive, psychedelic, or mind-altering substances during therapy sessions associated with Headway, including but not limited to:

1. Cannabis or cannabis derivatives (including THC- or CBD-containing products used therapeutically)
2. Psilocybin or psilocin
3. MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine)
4. Ketamine or racemic ketamine, including off-label use for depression or anxiety
5. Esketamine (Spravato)
6. Oxytocin when used for psychotherapeutic, bonding-enhancement, or emotional facilitation purposes

7. Other psychedelic or psychoactive agents not explicitly listed but used in a psychotherapeutic context

    

D. Energy, Spiritual, or Pseudoscientific Healing Practices

1. Aura healing
2. Chakra healing or alignment
3. Crystal healing
4. Gemstone therapy
5. Vibrational essences
6. Flower essences
7. Reiki
8. Therapeutic touch
9. Polarity therapy
    

E. Discredited or Dangerous Medical Interventions

1. Antineoplastons
2. Coley’s toxin
3. Laetrile
4. Hydrazine sulfate
5. Hydrogen peroxide therapy
6. Ozone therapy
7. Ultraviolet blood irradiation
8. Revici’s guided chemotherapy
9. 714-X
10. “Greek cancer cure”
     

F. Fraud-Associated Cancer or Immune “Treatments”

1. Hoxsey method
2. Gerson therapy
3. Iscador or mistletoe therapy when positioned as a cancer or mental health treatment
4. Immunoaugmentive therapy
5. Supportive Oligonucleotide Technique (SOT)
    

G. Sexualized or Erotic Practices Framed as Therapy

1. Yoni practices
2. Lingam practices
    

H. Aesthetic Interventions

1. Weight-loss pharmacotherapy or procedures, except when clinically indicated to address weight gain caused by a behavioral health condition or its treatment

2. Cosmetic procedures or aesthetic medicine, including but not limited to Botox, fillers, or laser treatments

    

I.  Out of Scope Treatments 

1. Hormonal Treatments for Minors (patients <age 18) including prescription of testosterone, androgen-blockers, estrogens, progesterone, or GnRH analogues

    

J. Illegal Treatments

1. Providers may not provide any treatment that is prohibited under applicable laws in the state or locality where the provider is practicing or where the patient is located.

    

These prohibitions apply to all forms of therapy, treatment, and care coordination delivered through or affiliated with the Headway platform, including services billed through Headway’s  Professional Corporations.

This list is non-exhaustive and may be updated as new substances or modalities emerge.
 

Restricted / Non-Standalone Interventions

The following interventions may not be offered, documented, promoted, or billed as standalone or primary services on the Headway platform. These interventions are only permissible when used adjunctively and subordinate to an evidence-based, payer-reimbursable behavioral health treatment.

A. Expressive or Experiential Therapies

1. Dance or movement therapy
2. Music therapy
3. Psychodrama

4. Therapeutic eurythmy

    

B. Mind–Body or Somatic Adjuncts

1. Guided imagery
2. Humor therapy or laughter therapy
3. Hypnosis
4. Trager approach
5. Feldenkrais method
6. Alexander technique
7. Autogenic training
    

C. Complementary Practices with Limited Mental Health Evidence

1. Aromatherapy or inhalation aromatherapy
2. Acupressure
3. Reflexology
4. Craniosacral therapy
5. Gua Sha
6. Cupping
7. Tui Na
8. Moxibustion
    

D. Movement-Based Wellness Practices

1. Pilates
2. Yoga
3. Qigong or longevity-focused movement practices
    

E. Technology-Adjacent or Supportive Interventions

1. Vibro-acoustic therapy
2. Whole body vibration
3. Weighted blankets when referenced for panic disorder or anxiety support
    

F. Non-Behavioral Health Medical Interventions

1. Vitamin, nutrient, or hydration infusions (IV therapy) or injections
2. Hormone replacement therapy or management of endocrine conditions
    

Conditions for Adjunctive Use

1. An evidence-based behavioral health treatment must be clearly identified and documented as the primary modality of care.
2. Restricted interventions must be clearly documented as adjunctive or supportive in nature.
3. Restricted interventions may not be billed independently or represented as reimbursable mental health treatments.
4. Restricted interventions may not replace, delay, or obscure clinically indicated psychotherapy or psychiatric care.
    

Oversight and Accountability

1. Providers found to be in violation of this Policy may be subject to corrective action.
2. Corrective action may include education, monitoring, suspension, or termination of the provider’s contractual relationship with Headway, consistent with applicable policies and procedures.

References:

APA Policy Statement on Evidence-Based Practice In Psychology
Aetna CPB: Complementary and Alternative Medicine
APA Position Statement on Conversion Therapy
FDA Warning on Ketamine for treatment of Psychiatric Disorders

FDA Guidance on Clinical trials with Psychedelic Drugs 

Relevant Headway Policies and Procedures:

Controlled Substance Prescribing Policy 

Policy name: Disallowed Treatment Modalities
Effective date: 03/17/2026
Review/approval date: 03/17/2026
Revision date: N/A
Approved by: Medical Director