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Will My Insurance Cover Complementary and Integrative Therapies?
Many insurance companies are starting to cover at least some of the costs for more widely accepted complementary and integrative methods. For example, acupuncture, chiropractic therapy, and massage are most often covered. If you are interested in trying some type of complementary therapy, contact your insurance company to find out what your plan covers. You may want to ask them:
- Does my insurance plan provide any coverage for [the complementary method you are interested in trying]? If so, how much coverage is provided and for how long?
- How much will I need to pay out of pocket for this treatment?
- Do I need a prescription or referral for this treatment?
- Do I need to get this service preauthorized?
- Do I need to see a practitioner who is in my network? If so, will any coverage be provided if I go out of network?
If possible, get your doctor to write you a referral or a recommendation for the complementary therapy you want to use. Many insurance companies require that the method be shown to be reasonable and medically necessary, and it may help later on to have your doctor’s recommendation.
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- References
The American Cancer Society medical and editorial content team
Our team is made up of doctors and oncology certified nurses with deep knowledge of cancer care as well as editors and translators with extensive experience in medical writing.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Paying for Complementary and Integrative Health Approaches. Accessed at https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/paying-for-complementary-and-integrative-health-approaches on August 20, 2021.
Last Revised: August 25, 2021
American Cancer Society medical information is copyrighted material. For reprint requests, please see our Content Usage Policy.
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