I know this is frustrating and that guy was definitely a jerk, but real sliding fee scales are out there-- My therapist works on a sliding fee scale in which I decided the fee when I started with him, based on what I could afford. I did not have health insurance at the time because I was not yet married and had just moved to Philly and did not have a job yet. I did research on the website for Psychology Today and searched by sliding fee scales.