Chambers Plan massage therapy claims

The Chambers Plan lists massage therapists and acupuncturists among the paramedical practitioners its group health coverage can include, but it does not publish dollar amounts, because each employer's plan sets its own. Your firm's benefits booklet tells you the yearly maximum and any per-visit limit. Every claim must be made within 12 months of the date of service with original receipts, through my-benefits eClaims, the my-benefits app, a provider who submits for you, or a mailed form.

The Chambers of Commerce Group Insurance Plan, usually called the Chambers Plan, is a group benefits plan for businesses; the plan says it serves some 30,000 business owners. If your employer is one of them, massage therapy may well be part of your coverage, but the plan’s public pages will not tell you how much. This page explains why, and walks through the claim itself, which is the same for every firm.

Is massage therapy covered on the Chambers Plan

Massage therapists are on the Chambers Plan’s list of paramedical practitioners, alongside acupuncturists, athletic therapists, chiropractors, physiotherapists, registered kinesiologists, osteopaths and several others. Whether your own plan includes massage, and for how much, is decided by the coverage your employer picked.

That is why the plan’s website shows no dollar figures for massage. The answer sits in three places:

• Your firm’s benefits booklet. It lists the yearly maximum, any per-visit cap and any requirement for a physician’s referral.
• The my-benefits site. Once you are registered, it shows your coverage and what you have already claimed.
• The service centre. Johnston Group runs it at 1-800-665-3365 or info@johnstongroup.ca, and it can confirm your balance before you book.

Look at the booklet before your first appointment, not after. A plan that pays a share of each visit up to a yearly cap behaves very differently from one that pays a fixed amount per visit, and our page on benefit maximums and per-visit limits explains how to read both.

The 12-month claim deadline

All Chambers Plan claims must be made within 12 months of the date of service and must include original receipts. There is no grace period built into that wording, so a massage from last autumn can be lost if the receipt sits in a drawer over the winter.

A simple habit helps: claim within a week of each appointment, while the receipt is still in your wallet or inbox.

What your receipt must show

The Chambers Plan claim form says receipts must include the service date, a complete breakdown of charges, and the practitioner’s name, credentials, address and phone number. A receipt missing any of those can slow the claim down or send it back to you.

For massage in Alberta, the credentials line deserves a careful look. Alberta has no regulatory college for massage therapy, so insurers rely on a therapist’s professional association membership, and the receipt should show it. Our guide to massage therapy receipts covers each line and what to ask for if something is missing.

The form adds two practical notes:

1. Originals are not returned. Keep a copy or a photo of anything you mail.
2. Second-payer claims need the first plan’s statement. If another plan already paid part of the cost, send its Explanation of Benefits statement with copies of the receipts instead of originals.

Four ways to submit

You can submit a Chambers Plan massage claim in four ways:

Method	How it works
my-benefits eClaims	Submit online on the plan member site; payments are deposited within 48 hours of the claim being processed
my-benefits app	Photograph your receipt with your phone and submit from the app
Provider submission	Many providers, massage therapists and chiropractors among them, can submit on your behalf
Paper form	Mail the extended health claim form with original receipts to the plan’s Winnipeg address

Direct deposit is set up through my-benefits or with a direct deposit form. If you would like your therapist to submit for you, ask the clinic before the appointment whether that is available for your plan, and read how direct billing for massage works so you know what you still owe at the desk.

The paper form names Desjardins Insurance as the insuring company and gives the mailing address as Chambers of Commerce Group Insurance Plan, 1051 King Edward Street, Winnipeg, MB R3H 0R4.

Family members, other plans and the spending account

When two plans cover the same person, the Chambers Plan asks adults to claim first under their own plan and then under a spouse’s plan for the rest. For children, start with the plan of the parent whose birthday falls earlier in the calendar year. Our page on claiming with two benefit plans explains why the order matters.

If your firm has a health spending account, the claim form lets you send the unpaid balance of a claim to it with a single box. The form also notes that expenses paid by your group plan are not eligible income tax deductions, while amounts the plan did not cover may be; the Explanation of Benefits is accepted as proof. Massage paid in Alberta has its own limits under the tax credit, which our medical expense tax credit page sets out.

Booking massage at Renu with Chambers Plan coverage

At Renu, massage is provided by Registered Massage Therapists in West Hillhurst, and you can book 30, 45, 60, 75 or 90-minute sessions through Jane; a 60-minute massage is $120. Before you book, check two things in your booklet: the yearly amount, and whether your plan asks for a physician’s referral for massage.

One note if you are watching costs. Our student massage sessions with Jennifer Negoescu are offered at lower prices, but student sessions are not RMT services, so check your Chambers Plan wording before you plan to claim one. Our page on student massage clinic receipts explains the difference.

Questions people ask

How much does the Chambers Plan pay for massage?

There is no single answer, because the Chambers Plan does not publish amounts for paramedical practitioners. Your employer chose the coverage, so the figures are in your firm's own benefits booklet or on the my-benefits site. The service centre at 1-800-665-3365 can also tell you what remains this year.

Can I still claim a massage from more than a year ago?

Not under the Chambers Plan rules. All claims must be made within 12 months of the date of service, so a visit from 13 months ago is outside the window. Submit soon after each appointment to avoid losing a claim.

Will the Chambers Plan return my original receipts?

No. The extended health claim form says original receipts are not returned, so make a copy or take a photo before you mail anything. Claiming through eClaims or the app avoids posting originals in the first place.

Can I put what the Chambers Plan did not pay toward my health spending account?

If your firm has a health spending account, the extended health claim form has a box asking whether to apply the balance of the claim to it. Ticking it sends the unpaid portion of an eligible expense to the account rather than leaving it with you.

Sources

1. Chambers Plan: Group health benefits
2. Chambers Plan: Making a claim
3. Chambers Plan: Extended health claim form

Page reviewed October 5, 2026. This page is education, not a diagnosis. For your own situation, talk to your doctor, surgeon or care team, or ask us.