Prospective patients should schedule a complimentary phone consultation by calling 949-763-4040 to see if my practice is a good fit. Please note that a patient-doctor relationship will not be established until the initial evaluation, when we meet for an hour. Visiting this website does not establish a patient-doctor relationship.

I am available for in-person appointments as well as telepsychiatry appointments. My in-person office hours currently are Mondays 9:30am-4:30pm and Thursdays 9:30am-4:30pm at the Mission Viejo office (27001 La Paz Rd Suite 201). I am also available on Fridays from 10:00am-3:00pm at the Newport Beach office (4100 Newport Place Dr Suite 730).  Urgent appointments may be scheduled outside of these hours for existing patients. 

Existing patients may communicate with me between appointments via secure email at drbenzl@karlabenzlmd.com or voicemail at 949-763-4040. Please note that I check my voicemail daily. However, non-urgent matters will be addressed during business hours, Monday through Friday. Emails will be checked daily Monday through Friday, but not on weekends. Urgent matters should therefore be addressed to voicemail.  

Please allow 48 business hours to process refill requests. Existing patients should send all refill requests to drbenzl@karlabenzlmd.com. 

All cancellations must be done 48 business hours prior to your appointment. Any non-emergent cancellations made after 48 business hours will be subject to a $175 penalty charge. This penalty may be waived for medical emergencies, at the discretion of Dr. Benzl. Also, if Dr. Benzl is able to reschedule the appointment within the same week, the penalty may be waived, at the discretion of Dr. Benzl.

For any disability forms or other administrative requests, please schedule an appointment to review the forms with Dr. Benzl. Please note that administrative work between appointments lasting more than 10 minutes will be subject to a fee of $85 per 10 minute interval.

Your information will be kept confidential under all circumstances except for the following:

1) You are a danger to yourself.

2) You are a danger to anyone else.

3) You are involved in child abuse or are aware of the occurrence of child abuse.

I am a mandated reporter in the above cases and am legally obligated to notify the appropriate agencies, such as law enforcement or Child Protective Services, in order to keep you or others safe. Additionally, if I am asked to speak with another physician regarding your care in the case of an emergency, you will be notified, however, patient consent is not mandatory for emergent physician to physician contact. Please view my policy forms for more detailed information.