Your auto insurance may cover the cost of massage therapy if you have been injured in an auto accident.

Holistic Massage of Hood River does not bill directly to auto insurance companies (for example, Progressive, Allstate, Nationwide, State Farm, Country, or Geico) for appointments with our licensed massage therapists. However, some plans will allow you to submit your massage receipts and be reimbursed for your expenses. Please contact your MVA claim rep for more information.

If you own a vehicle, you most likely have Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage (also called Personal Accident Insurance or PAI) as a part of your auto insurance policy. If you are in an accident and you are at fault, your insurance company will cover your medical costs up to the amount your policy allows. If another driver is at fault, your auto insurance will still usually cover the cost of your medical treatment while they negotiate with the other driver’s insurance company for reimbursement. By Oregon state law, PIP coverage must cover the cost of massage therapy services and generally, there is no co-payment required of the patient.

Auto accidents can cause these conditions among others:

• whiplash
• neck and back injuries
• tendon damage
• muscle spasms
• myofascial pain
• headaches
• migraines
• secondary muscle group pain ("guarding")
• insomnia (pain can interrupt sleep)

Massage therapy can alleviate and even help prevent these and other accident related injuries.

If you have been involved in a motor vehicle accident (MVA), the emergency room evaluations done immediately following the auto accident are meant to ensure you don’t have injuries such as concussion, broken bone, or abrasion. Soft tissue includes the muscles, tendons, and ligaments in your body and injuries to these  cannot be detected on x-rays and so are often initially overlooked. It is common for the accident victims to not notice any soft tissue injury immediately following a vehicle accident, but then wake up a week, two weeks or sometimes even months later, with severe debilitating neck pain, back spasm, or headache. In fact, the symptoms of soft tissue injuries you may have sustained in a motor vehicle accident may not arise for up to six months after the initial collision.

Sprains and strains are a type of soft tissue injury. For example a whiplash injury to the neck, also known as cervical sprain/strain, is one of the most common injuries that result from an auto accident. This injury occurs when the head is abruptly jerked back and forth, as is often the case in an auto accident, and the muscles and ligaments are injured. It is important to begin massage treatment as soon as possible to begin the recovery process as injuries left untreated can sometimes persist for months or even years.

Massage therapy can play an effective role in treating these soft tissue injuries. Massage therapy can aid recovery by restoring balance to your autonomic nervous system. Relaxation techniques such as craniosacral therapy or Swedish massage can help alleviate the shock and trauma to your nervous system caused by an accident. Massage therapy also promotes circulation of blood and lymphatic fluid which can reduce swelling as well as assist in flushing the injured area with fresh blood rich in nutrients that aid in tissue recovery.

Auto accident claims can be complicated and depend upon a number of factors. If you have questions, feel free to contact us. We'll do our best to help or direct you to additional information resources as necessary.

Some health insurance policies will cover the cost of massage therapy, and we are a preferred provider for some plans.

Health insurance plans vary in their cost coverage of massage therapy and the conditions under which the massage therapy services are received. Certain health insurance plans require a doctor’s referral in order to cover the cost of massage therapy while other health plans allow a certain number of visits without a referral. Some health insurance plans cover massage therapy costs in full, while other health plans require a client co-payment.

Most insurance plans which do cover the cost of massage therapy require that treatment is provided by a massage therapist who is contracted within the insurance company's network, referred to as a preferred or in-network provider. It is necessary that you check with your health insurance provider for the exact details of your specific insurance policy.

Important - We provide preliminary insurance benefit checks as a courtesy to our clients. A positive verification of your massage therapy benefit with your insurance company does not guarantee payment of services by your insurance provider. You must confirm your insurance benefits with your insurance provider yourself as you are responsible for payment of services in full if your insurance provider denies the insurance claim for any reason.

Holistic Massage of Hood River is a preferred/in-network provider for some health insurance companies, including:

• Providence Health Plan
• Premera Blue Cross
  • We are accepting new clients for some Premera Blue Cross plans
• Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield
  • We are accepting new clients for some Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield plans

* As of January 1st, 2022, many Regence/Premera plans that formerly covered up to 90 minute sessions are now only covering 60 minutes. Please contact your insurance provider or call us for your updated plan details.

We not bill directly to out-of-network health insurance companies. However, some plans will allow you to submit your massage receipts and be reimbursed for your expenses. Please contact your health insurance company for details on submitting receipts for out-of-network services.

Massage therapy is often prescribed by physicians, naturopathic physicians, and chiropractors as part of a treatment plan for these and other medical conditions:

• recovery from surgeries
• tendonitis
• sprains (ligaments) or strains (muscles/tendons)
• osteoarthritis
• repetitive strain injuries
• athletic injuries
• sciatic pain
• fibromyalgia
• carpal tunnel syndrome
• thoracic outlet syndrome
• temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ)
• swelling or edema
• insomnia
• anxiety
• emotional stress

These and other conditions can be effectively treated with medical massage, depending on your physician's diagnosis and prescription.

If your health insurance plan requires a referral or prescription in order to cover the cost of massage therapy, please provide us with:

• your prescription from a medical physician, naturopathic physician or chiropractor
• some insurance plans require that the frequency and duration of massage therapy visits is specified on the prescription
• the prescription must include a diagnosis code (or codes) that we require for billing

Please note: a referral or prescription from your physician does not guarantee that massage will be covered by your insurance. Your insurance plan must list massage therapy as a covered service in order for it to be covered.

Please bring your prescription or referral to your first appointment, or send it by email to info@massagehoodriver.com,or call us at 541-490-1444.

If you have been injured on the job some workers’ compensation insurance plans will cover massage therapy treatment.

Holistic Massage of Hood River does not bill directly to workers compensation insurance programs. However, some plans will allow you to submit your massage receipts and be reimbursed for your expenses. Please contact your workers comp claim rep for more information.