HSA/ FSA for your massage therapy treatments
Relieve chronic pain with massage therapy and use your HSA/ FSA to pay for your treatments.
It’s actually extremely common to have your Health Savings Account or Flex Spending Account cover the cost of your treatments, as there are countless health benefits of massage therapy.
What are the benefits of massage therapy?
Massages don't just feel good, they reduce stress. Reducing stress plays a big part in the health and functioning of your body. Not only is anxiety reduced with massage by calming your nervous system, but it also helps lower blood pressure and reduce feelings of depression. By bringing you out of that fight or flight response your body comes back into its natural state of balance which improves your immune system and digestion. Massage therapy also improves circulation, decreases pain and inflammation while improving posture, range of motion and flexibility. This all helps your to rest more comfortably at night creating better quality sleep, thus reducing insomnia.
So how can you pay for massage therapy through your health savings account with pre-tax dollars?
Before we discuss the process of getting a massage with your plan, let’s do a quick overview on HSAs and FSAs. These are both special healthcare arrangements that allow you to set aside money for medical costs, such as deductibles, monthly prescriptions, copayments, and coinsurance. You don’t pay taxes on this money.
In some cases, your employer will contribute money to your HSA or FSA each year as well. Both of these plans have a lot of fine print you’ll need to consider, so talk to your HR department if you have questions.
These healthcare plans usually come with a debit card that includes your (and your employer’s) contributions. In most cases, you won’t have to worry about being reimbursed, as your funds will already be on the flex debit card. You can spend this on any of the above medical costs. I have had clients receive reimbursement on their therapy sessions in the past, but most use the funds available on their card.
Why Would You Want an HSA or FSA?
There are a wide variety of benefits to these health accounts. First, HSAs and FSAs help you automate your savings for medical expenses. People rarely expect a medical emergency to happen, so these plans help you prepare without having to think about it.
And then there are the tax benefits. For both HSA and FSA, any contributions you make are pre-tax, so you end up saving a lot of money in the long run.
HSAs may also roll over, meaning you can take any savings you’ve made for the year and apply them to the next year. FSAs, on the other hand, do not often roll over. The set amount you put aside will go away if it’s not spent before December 31.
There are a few differences between FSA and HSA overall, but as it pertains to paying for a massage, they work the same.
So How Can I use an HSA or FSA for Massage?
In many cases, a massage will be covered by your plan, whether you use an HSA or FSA. Follow these steps to make sure you’re qualified.
1. Start with HR
Before you do anything else, reach out to your HR department or your medical insurance carrier and ask if massage therapy is considered a covered treatment. In some situations, an insurance policy won’t cover massages, even if you get a prescription from a doctor.
That being said, I’ve found that the majority of customers who have an FSA or HSA had no trouble covering their massages.
2. Doctor visit
Once you’ve gotten the go-ahead from your insurance carrier, schedule an appointment with your primary care physician. Now don’t just go in and start by saying you want a massage. You’ll need to first explain your specific symptoms.
There are a wide variety of mental and physical conditions that could qualify for a massage. Stress-related symptoms, insomnia, circulation issues caused by diabetes or hypertension, sciatica, arthritis, fibromyalgia, anxiety, depression and chronic headaches or migraines, chronic back, neck, shoulder or hip pain are all examples that should qualify for massage therapy.
Preparation is key to this discussion. Don’t be afraid to bring case studies of people who’ve alleviated similar symptoms through the power of massage therapy or discuss your own experiences of how massage treatments have helped you in the past. You could also suggest specific massage therapy options, which can help you illustrate the legitimacy of this type of care such as: deep tissue, neuromuscular therapy and myofascial release (all techniques that I use in my sessions).
3. Get a prescription
Once you and your doctor have talked it over, you’ll need them to write a prescription for a massage. In your insurance’s eyes, this acts as proof that you actually need massage therapy for treatment (not just a spa day).
Your prescription will need to include the following:
A reason you need massage therapy, such as a medical condition or injury (such as the conditions listed above).
The number of sessions you’ll require each month. Do you need a massage every month? Or once every 1-2 weeks? This will depend greatly on the severity of your condition,
The duration of the treatment plan. How long are you going to need to receive this treatment? If you are planning to use massage as a maintenance plan once your pain is alleviated, I recommend asking for a 1 year prescription. Think of it as a having it available if you need more therapy in the future (because sometimes things happen). If you don't need extended therapy then it's no problem because you don't need to use those other sessions.
Getting a prescription is easier than it sounds, so there’s no need to stress over this step. Healthcare providers often write prescriptions for things like massage or acupuncture without requiring an in-person doctor visit.
4. Use Your FSA or HSA for Massage
Once you have your prescription, you can book an appointment with me! Just bring your HSA/ FSA debit card to your session for check out or consider pre-paying for your session (some clients prefer to pre-pay for their session to verify that the funds are available for their session).
I DO NOT need a copy of your prescription. It is strictly for you to keep in your medical records for the tax year.