Online fax for an LMFT private practice: a signed BAA from $4.99

For one marriage and family therapist sending and receiving 200 pages a month, the lowest price with a signed BAA among the providers in the table is Fax Pigeon Basic at $4.99 a month billed annually ($5.99 month to month), against $10.70 at SRFax, $14.99 at WestFax (month to month only) and $24.99 at iFax.

What is the best online fax for an LMFT private practice?

The best online fax for an LMFT private practice, measured by price with a signed BAA among the providers in the table, is Fax Pigeon, at $4.99 a month billed annually on Basic for 200 pages and $9.99 on Standard for 500. A second or third therapist joins the same plan at no charge, because every plan includes unlimited people, and the BAA signed at sign-up can be read at faxpigeon.com/baa before paying. Each paid plan faxes in and out on the practice's own number.

WestFax includes a BAA on every plan and bills month to month only. SRFax provides its BAA on request through a Request a BAA link, iFax's free BAA comes with Plus and Pro, and eFax prints its BAA on the Business plan card.

The table shows the cheapest plan with a BAA for one person, as a price a month, at 200 and 500 pages sent and received.

A second therapist changes the other prices. WestFax Solo is capped at one user, so a second person moves the account to Team, which includes 5 users and 1,500 pages for $39.95. iFax adds a team license and prices a team on Pro, since two or more team licenses take Plus off its selector. eFax Business includes 5 users.

What do marriage and family therapists fax, and to whom?

Marriage and family therapists fax records for a referral or transfer of care to other treating providers, copies that one partner or family member requests, copies sent at a client's signed request and releases a client signs, and they send Medicare proof of their supervised hours. A referral counts as treatment in HIPAA's definitions (45 CFR 164.501), and 164.506(c)(2) permits a disclosure for treatment.

The table lists what an MFT sends most, where it goes and the rule behind it.

An authorization's required elements have their own page (what a HIPAA authorization must include).

Who can see the records when the client is a couple or a family?

When the client is a couple or a family, HIPAA gives each individual a right of access to the information about that individual, psychotherapy notes excluded, while the AAMFT Code opens couple, family or group records only with written authorization from each individual competent to give one. HIPAA defines psychotherapy notes as a mental health professional's notes on a private, group, joint or family counseling session, kept separate from the rest of the record, and those notes need an authorization (whether psychotherapy notes are protected under HIPAA).

The table sets HIPAA's rule beside the AAMFT Code's for each question, as each one states it.

State law can open a minor's record to a parent as well: HIPAA lets a covered entity disclose to a parent, or give the parent access, where state or other law, case law included, permits or requires it.

What does the AAMFT Code of Ethics ask of records and technology?

The AAMFT Code of Ethics, revised effective January 1, 2026, asks marriage and family therapists to store, safeguard and dispose of clinical records under applicable laws and professional standards (2.5), to notify clients in a timely manner when records are breached (2.6) and to use technology that adheres to professional and legal standards for any confidential client documentation they generate, transmit or keep electronically (6.5). The code starts from the point that the client may be more than one person. Standard 2.2 allows disclosure by written authorization or waiver, or where law mandates or permits it, and keeps one individual's confidences from others in the client unit without that individual's prior written permission.

Consulting has its own limit: under 2.8, an MFT shares nothing that could reasonably identify a client with colleagues or referral sources without written authorization, and only what the consultation needs. Standard 3.5 asks for accurate and adequate clinical and financial records. Where the code sets a higher standard than the law, MFTs must meet the code (AAMFT Code of Ethics).

Can marriage and family therapists bill Medicare, and what proof does enrolling take?

Since January 1, 2024, marriage and family therapists can bill Medicare independently at 75% of what a clinical psychologist is paid, and enrolling takes at least 2 years or 3,000 hours of post-master's supervised clinical experience (CMS's MFT and MHC page). Medicare also asks for a master's or doctor's degree that qualifies for MFT licensure and a state MFT license. CMS's Program Integrity Manual sets the form of the proof:

• The provider's letterhead carries the statement, and an email is not acceptable.
• The supervisor signs it, or a department head, or one of the provider's current authorized or delegated officials.
• The state licensing or credentialing body, or a national MFT credentialing organization, can give the statement instead, on its own letterhead.
• Years and hours worked for several providers add up, and hours before the degree never count, even where the state counts them.

When the Medicare contractor asks for more, the reply follows its own steps (how to answer a Medicare enrollment development request).

The paper CMS-855I has no MFT box yet, so section 2H's Undefined Non-Physician Practitioner Specialty carries "MFT", while PECOS lists the specialty online. The NPPES taxonomy code is 106H00000X, family psychotherapy bills as CPT 90846 and 90847, and multiple-family group psychotherapy as 90849. A group takes reassigned benefits through PECOS or section 4F of the paper CMS-855I, where the MFT signs section 15B and the group's official signs 15C. Medicare does not cover services incident to the MFT's own services, and hospital inpatients fall outside the benefit under 42 CFR 410.53(b)(2).

TRICARE lists a Certified Marriage and Family Therapist with a master's degree in counseling with an emphasis on family and marriage therapy, who must agree to participate in TRICARE (TRICARE provider types).

What does HIPAA fax cost one MFT, and two who share a number?

For one MFT at 200 pages a month, HIPAA fax costs $59.88 a year on Fax Pigeon Basic billed annually, and two MFTs who share a number pay the same, against $479.40 a year for WestFax Team, which bills month to month, and $599.88 for iFax Pro with a team license. On Fax Pigeon both therapists share one number, one inbox with roles and assignment, and one page allowance, and adding a person costs nothing on any plan.

The table shows the cheapest plan with a BAA for 2 people, as a price a month, at 200 and 500 pages sent and received.

At 500 pages, two therapists pay $9.99 a month billed annually on Fax Pigeon Standard, against $13.65 at SRFax. Pages past the plan cost 10¢ on Basic and 5¢ on Standard, eFax Business charges 7¢, and iFax adds credits automatically once usage reaches 95% of the plan limit. Faxes go out from the browser or from email, and every delivered fax gets delivery proof.

Which marriage and family therapists should switch, and to what?

Marriage and family therapists paying for WestFax Solo, iFax Plus or eFax Business to get a BAA should switch to Fax Pigeon Basic at $4.99 a month billed annually, and two-therapist offices on WestFax Team or iFax team licenses should switch to a plan where the second therapist costs nothing. Two MFTs on WestFax Team pay $407.52 a year more at 200 pages than on Fax Pigeon Basic, both month to month.

Porting is free on every paid plan, from sign-up or from Settings, while WestFax charges $20 one time to port a number in and SRFax $25 for a local number. Most transfers finish in 5 to 15 business days, and the number keeps working with the current provider until then.

* Prices last verified October 19, 2026, at each provider's own site. Fax Pigeon is not affiliated with SRFax, eFax, iFax or WestFax.