Does Medicare cover acupuncture?
Medicare covers acupuncture only for chronic low back pain — up to 12 visits in 90 days, with more if it's helping — and nothing else.
What flips the answer
- Covered when
You're being treated for chronic low back pain (12+ weeks) and are within the 12-visit / up-to-20-per-year limit.
- Covered when
Your Medicare Advantage plan includes acupuncture as an extra supplemental benefit beyond the standard rule.
- Not covered when
The acupuncture is for any condition other than chronic low back pain.
Original Medicare (Part B) covers acupuncture for one condition: chronic low back pain, defined as pain lasting 12 weeks or longer without a specific identifiable cause like injury or another disease.
The benefit is capped. Medicare covers up to 12 acupuncture visits in a 90-day period. If you show improvement, up to 8 more visits can be covered, for a maximum of 20 acupuncture treatments per year. Treatment is stopped if your pain doesn't improve. You pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount after the Part B deductible.
Acupuncture for any other reason — headaches, knee pain, nausea, fertility, general wellness — is not covered by Original Medicare.
Some Medicare Advantage plans offer additional acupuncture visits as a supplemental benefit; if that matters to you, check the specific plan's extra benefits.
That's the general answer. Yours is written in your actual policy.
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