01/20/2022
https://www.healio.com/news/primary-care/20220118/acupuncture-use-is-increasing-but-many-insurers-do-not-cover-it?fbclid=IwAR0bUQ69i2ylYfzwND_LYTuFdtsbd4t0lTqGo7opXryIq9m1D1qAsaPahok
Sadly: Insurance trends today 1) cut our pay, 2) raise your copays, and 3) raise your deductible, and 4) cut your benefits. For a real, viable alternative to opioids for pain control.
Vote with your dollars, folks. Insurance companies will get away with paying the least they can.
Every year I drop another insurance company. This year, Kaiser is on the chopping block. Just waiting for them to publish member benefits to see if it's worth my staying in-network. It's January 19, and they have not yet published benefits. But they want us to sign a new contract.
Until I see the actual pay that I will be agreeing to, I will not agree (not sign). I have until the beginning of March, as do they. Therefore, I sadly cannot accept new Kaiser patients until I can check benefits, and agree to what they are offering.
Thank you for your understanding, and for voting with your dollars as to what kind of healthcare matters to you.
That said - Acupuncture and chiropractic are very cheap compared to surgeries and other lifelong therapies. If your insurance does not cover it, consider the overall cost vs benefit statistics in your budget.
Even though the number of patients who visited an acupuncturist about doubled from 2010 to 2019, and insurance coverage for the treatment increased, most patients continued to pay out of pocket, according to recent data.“Any decrease in opioid prescribing [for chronic pain] is a welcome public...
