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A separate HIPAA-covered phone and text line for therapists

Spruce gives your practice its own number for calls, texts and voicemail, with AI voicemail transcription and a BAA. From $24£18€21A$35C$34 a month.

At a glance

  • What it costs$24£18€21A$35C$34 a month

  • Worth, in extra profit or time saved in the worked example$121£91€108A$175C$171 a month

  • Pays for itselfIn about a week

  • Sign up and configure; no technical skills neededEasy to set up

Figures come from the worked example below, using its stated assumptions. Tool prices checked . How we check prices

The problem

Many solo therapists give clients their personal cell number, so schedule changes and late-night texts land next to family messages, on a phone with no BAA behind it. Listening to and noting 15 voicemails a week at 2 minutes each also takes about 2 hours a month (15 x 2 x 4.3 = 129 minutes).

What the AI does

Spruce Basic ($24£18€21A$35C$34 a month per user) gives the practice its own phone number with calls, texts, video and fax in a shared inbox on your phone or computer, plus auto-replies and AI voicemail transcription. Spruce says every trial and paid plan includes a BAA. Set an after-hours auto-reply that says when you'll respond and that anyone in crisis should call or text 988 or call 911. Texts are for scheduling and practical questions; clinical decisions stay in session.

A worked example

A solo therapist in Philadelphia with 22 clients moves them from her personal cell to a Spruce Basic number and sets office hours for replies.

Before

Client calls and texts on a personal cell; about 2 hours a month listening to and noting voicemails

After

A separate practice number; voicemails read as text in about 30 seconds each

What it's worth

About $121£91€108A$175C$171 a month of your time, against $24£18€21A$35C$34 for Spruce Basic. Reading transcribed voicemails saves about 1.5 minutes on each of 15 a week, about 1.6 hours a month; if an hour of your time is worth $75£56€67A$108C$106 that's $121£91€108A$175C$171. The bigger gain, a work line covered by a BAA and separate from your personal phone, has no dollar figure. Texting needs a one-time $19.50£14.66€17.45A$28.15C$27.56 registration fee.

How to set it up

  1. Sign up for Spruce Basic, choose or port a practice number, and pay the one-time $19.50£14.66€17.45A$28.15C$27.56 texting registration fee.
  2. Check that the BAA is in place for your account (Spruce includes one on every trial and paid plan) and file it with your HIPAA records.
  3. Write an after-hours auto-reply with your response times and the crisis numbers, 988 and 911.
  4. Give clients the new number at their next session, update your informed consent on texting, and agree what texts are for.
  5. Turn off message previews on your phone's lock screen.

What goes wrong

  • Texts and transcriptions can become part of the clinical record. Decide what you copy into the chart and how long you keep messages.
  • A client in crisis may text instead of calling 988. Make the limits clear at intake and in the auto-reply, and don't promise replies you can't give.
  • AI voicemail transcription can mishear names and numbers. Listen to the audio before acting on anything important.
  • Spruce is priced per user: a group practice with 5 clinicians on Basic pays $120£90€107A$173C$170 a month.

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Last updated October 18, 2026.