Alternative Therapy - Is it Covered By Your Insurance Policy?:

As the allure of alternative treatments grow, many consumers are curious to see if these treatments are covered by their existing health insurance policy. In the past, the answer was typically a solid "no," but in recent years, this has been changing.

While your insurance company may not provide coverage for all types of alternative therapies, chances are improving that at least some of these treatments will be covered. If you have any questions regarding your current coverage, it is a great idea to discuss these questions with your representative for more information.

If your insurance company does provide coverage, it is important that you are ready with some questions to further clarify what you can expect. Here is a list of questions that are frequently asked by consumers:

1. Will I need to get pre-authorization for alternative care? In many cases, your insurance company will only provide coverage after they have given you the authorization for the procedure. It is important to know ahead of time what your insurance company will require before having a procedure performed.

2. What kind of services will be covered? If your insurance company does provide coverage for an alternative therapy, it is also helpful to understand if all of the facets of this therapy will be covered. These facets can include tests, services, office visits and much more.

3. Will I need to provide a co-payment? A co-payment may be necessary for alternative treatments in some cases. If you are used to providing a co-payment for your insurance policy, this will not come as a surprise, but it is important to understand just how much you will need to pay out-of-pocket before receiving treatment.

4. Will I need a referral? If you have an HMO plan, you may need to get a referral from your primary care physician before seeking alternative treatments or therapy.

5. Are there any time limitations? If your insurance company does cover alternative treatments, such as visits to a chiropractor, how many visits will they cover over the course of a year? This is helpful if your company limits the amount of visits for which they will provide coverage.

6. Are there any qualifications for coverage of alternative therapy? For example, if you must have a back injury for visits to a chiropractor to be covered, you will need to know this ahead of time. In this case, if you simply visit a chiropractor to improve your overall well-being, these visits may not be covered.

7. What kind of limits can I expect? Some insurance companies set limits on the dollar amount that they will cover for alternative therapy and in most cases, these treatments will still be subject to your yearly deductible.

Once you have obtained all of this necessary information, you will be ready to make a decision on the types of alternative therapies that are available to you and still enjoy your health insurance coverage.

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