a community of practitioners

Billing insurance companies for massage therapy?

Has anyone ever billed insurance companies for massage therapy? If so, can you please send me some info on how to go about doing this?. I have several clients at my day spa that wish to use their insurance for their sessions. I keep hearing that it is possible, but I always end up at a road block.

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Kathy Jo King on September 29, 2009 at 7:20am

Hello! I purchased "The Medical Massage Office Insurance Billing Manual" and it takes you step-by-step through the process. It also includes all the forms you should/could use. I don't use all of them, but many of them I do use. I also bought the computer software that fills out the insurance form that needs to be mailed in to the insurance company. You don't NEED to buy the software, but I'm glad I have it.

Beyond that, many people think that if they get a prescription from the doctor then insurance will pay. Not true at all. Very few insurance companies cover massage therapy, period. Either have the client call their plan administrator, or the ins. company directly to see if they have the benefit. Another avenue they might be able to use is a Flex Plan that some companies use. This allows the person to set aside $000.00/year to cover medical and childcare expenses. It is before-tax dollars so the benefit is that the client can often use this fund to pay for massage. They pay you out of pocket and get re-imbursed (they'll need a receipt and often a form filled out by you which they provide). This is NOT insurance, but it is a way that some folks get massage using tax-free money. Let me know if you have other questions, I'll try to help.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Brooke Flinn on October 2, 2009 at 5:07pm

Personally I feel that since it's only a few clients it's not worth the headache. If they have and FSA (Flex Spending or Flex Saving Account) card and can make payments from that you are much better off. Insurance companies are a pain in the butt to deal with, probably will require a doctors script (which isn't hard to get), and all have such different policies that you probably need to contact the insurance provider to figure out how to go about doing it.

If it was a major part of you business and you are doing a lot of medical massage then it might be worth it.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Julie Onofrio on October 2, 2009 at 6:45pm

Most states should allow you to bill for workmans compensation and motor vehicle accidents. FL and WA are the only two states where you can actually bill HMO's and PPO's. In each state there may be individual insurance companies that will allow you to bill but you would have to talk to each one directly.

In general most plans only cover injuries or acute conditions. There are a very few who offer wellness plans. I have all of the steps to billing insurance outlined on my site at http://thebodyworker.com/ins-billing-contents.htm

I also recommend Vivian Madison Mahoneys' insurance billing program and she is the expert on which states will pay etc.

Julie