Timothy M. Fishback, M.D.
About Me
I grew up on a farm in Southern Ohio. I attended Ohio State University in Columbus, earning a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and Psychology. I earned my Doctor of Medicine degree at the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland. I moved to California to complete two years of a surgical residency at USC and three years of psychiatry residency at UCLA and St. Vincent’s Hospital and Medical Center in Greenwich Village in New York City. I’ve worked ten of my thirty-five-plus years in practice as the State of California’s Chief Psychiatrist for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and all the other years in private practice in Los Angeles at Cedars Sinai Hospital and, currently, as a solo practitioner in Palm Springs, California. My practice is limited to adult psychiatry and psychopharmacology, diagnosing and treating patients with ADHD [my specialty], depression, and anxiety. When I’m not working, I enjoy DIY projects, reading, creating on the computer, watching movies, and hanging out with my friends, especially with my best friends…my beloved dogs.
Availability
My calendar is full through April. Please check back on May 1, 2025, for my available times.
Problems I treat:
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in adults is my specialty
- Depressive disorders
- Anxiety disorders
Problems I don't treat because the best treatment is with a staffed, full-service office or clinic:
- alcohol and substance use disorders
- autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders
- schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders
- bipolar and related disorders
- anorexia and bulimia
- neurocognitive disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer's
- disruptive, impulse control, and conduct disorders
Patients that should be treated by other psychiatrists who are specialty trained and experienced:
- geriatric patients with multiple, complex medical conditions
- children and adolescents
- anorexia and bulimia type eating disorders
- neurocognitive disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer's
- autism
- disruptive, impulse control, and conduct disorders
- alcohol and substance use disorders
- sex offenders
***NOTE: If you are dealing with alcohol and/or substance abuse, you must be seen by a certified addiction specialist with a fully staffed office or clinic. I am not able to provide the necessary level of care for you to succeed in achieving and maintaining sobriety. Your insurance company can assign you a case manager to help you locate the best providers for your treatment. You can also find treatment resources at https://findtreatment.samhsa.gov
Insurance Verification
Additional Information
There is a nationwide shortage of psychiatrists, the worst for any specialty and even worse here in the desert. Many psychiatrists no longer accept insurance due to the poor reimbursement rates compared to other specialists and the multi-layered complexities of insurance billing. I continue to take insurance out of a sense of duty to my community since few can afford to pay out of pocket.
Navigating insurance coverage and finding providers can be frustrating. To ensure that your plan will cover the costs of seeing me, call the customer service number on the back of your insurance card to verify that you are covered to see me. Ask what your copay, coinsurance, and deductible amounts are so there are no surprises.
I don't accept cash or self-pay patients. The No Surprises Act, a federal law that took effect on January 1, 2022, and which I support, mandates that healthcare providers provide self-pay patients with a Good Faith Estimate [GFE] of the costs for their services. The complexity and requirements for the GFE are beyond my administrative capacity, so I choose not to see self-pay patients.
Some insurance plans provide out-of-network benefits. The patient pays the doctor in full, out-of-pocket, and the doctor generates a statement (receipt) that the patient submits to the insurer for partial reimbursement. Since my policy is to not accept self-pay patients, by extension, I can't accept patients for whom I am an out-of-network provider.
NOTE:
Even if I am a network provider for your insurance plan, if your benefits are managed by a particular Medical Group or Health Maintenance Organization (HMO), they may require you to see one of their organization's contracted psychiatrists. Call them to ensure you are covered to see me.
Example entities include:
- DAP and Borrego Health
- Inland Empire Physicians
- Inland Psychiatric Medical Group
- Desert Oasis Healthcare Commercial Plans
- Others
These are some insurance plans that I don't accept:
Health Net (temporarily not accepting new patients)
Medi-Cal
Kaiser
Molina
Tricare-West
Desert Oasis Healthcare/Heritage Medicare Plans
IEHP
Multiplan
Oscar
Winstone Behavioral Health
To discuss scheduling a new patient consultation appointment, call (760) 567-9522, or email office@timfishbackmd.com
