MarginForCare vs. Headway
Headway is a network that takes billing off your hands — at the cost of holding the payer contract. MarginForCareis a copilot for therapists who want to keep their own contracts and still have insurance operations that don't eat their evenings.
The short version
Headway works by holding the payer contract themselves and billing through it — providers don't pay a direct fee, but the platform's cut is embedded in the session rate they pay you, and it isn't publicly published. For therapists who want to avoid billing entirely, that tradeoff can be worth it.
MarginForCare is the opposite model. You keep your own payer contracts. You press submit. We sit on top of your clearinghouse and give you a work queue, plain-English denial explanations, ERA reconciliation, and AI-drafted appeals — in one place, for a flat monthly fee. Every dollar the payer sends lands in your account.
Side by side
Who holds the payer contract
You do — your contracts, your rates
Headway
Headway does — you bill through their agreement
Who presses submit on claims
You do — every claim
Headway
Headway does — they handle billing
Credentialing with new payers
You stay credentialed in your name
Headway
Headway credentials you through their agreements
ERA reconciliation visible to you
Full queue, automated comparison
Headway
ERA data shown in the provider portal
Denial explanation in plain English
Plain-English breakdown + suggested next step
Headway
Support handles most denials on your behalf
Appeal drafting
AI-drafted, you review and send
Headway
Headway files appeals on your behalf
What it costs the therapist
Flat monthly fee
Headway
No direct therapist fee; cut embedded in session rate
Private-pay clients & out-of-network work
Keep your own panel; we're not a network
Headway
Allowed for clients Headway can't accept
Sources for Headway claims
- Headway — Your Practice, Powered by Headway (for providers)
- Headway Help Center — Rates and agreements
- Headway Help Center — Credentialing with Headway
- Headway — What is an ERA in insurance billing (provider portal context)
Claims on this page reflect publicly available information as of the last review. If something about Headway has changed, please let us know — we'll update the page.
Who each is for
Not a pitch — a fit check. The honest cut is different for different practices.
Stay with Headway if…
- Therapists who want someone else to handle claims and appeals entirely
- Clinicians prioritizing credentialing speed over rate negotiation
- Providers who don't want to own the billing workflow at all
- Therapists building a new caseload who want the network's referrals
Try MarginForCare if…
- Therapists who want to keep their own payer contracts and direct rates
- Practices who want visibility into every denial, ERA, and appeal
- Clinicians willing to spend 10–15 minutes a day to keep control
- Small groups (2–10 clinicians) running billing in-house or with a part-time biller
Keep your contracts. Keep your margin.
A 30-minute call — no pitch, no slides. We'll look at your current denial load and tell you honestly whether we're a fit.