How to Get Your Doctor to Prescribe Massage in Washington State

Timothy Wang
Nov 12, 2025
4 min read

Updated: Dec 12, 2025

Your Legal Right. Your Health. Your Holistic Care.

Washington is one of the strongest supporters of holistic, hands-on healthcare in the country. Under Washington State law, all state-regulated health insurance plans are required to cover at least 6 medically-necessary massage therapy visits per year when prescribed by a licensed provider.

That 6-visit minimum is the legal floor — not the clinical standard.

In real medical practice, most doctors prescribe massage therapy for longer, structured treatment plans, commonly:

➡️ 12 weeks

➡️ 2 visits per week

➡️ 24 total visits

This schedule aligns with how musculoskeletal pain, stress conditions, and nervous-system dysregulation actually respond to care.

Massage isn’t self-care fluff.

It’s evidence-based, therapeutic, and protected under Washington law as part of non-drug pain management and whole-body healthcare.

This guide shows you:

• Exactly how to ask your PCP for a massage prescription

• Word-for-word scripts to use

• How to request full-body treatment

• How to ask for massage for stress and anxiety

• Why 6 visits is the legal minimum — not the medical norm

• Why state law is on your side

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🌿 Washington State Guarantees Massage Coverage — At Least 6 Visits

Because massage therapy is a licensed healthcare service in Washington, all state-regulated health plans must cover a minimum of 6 medically-necessary massage visits per year with a prescription.

This applies to:

• Employer plans

• Individual Marketplace plans

• Medicaid managed-care plans

• Kaiser, Aetna, Premera, Regence, Ambetter, Molina, Coordinated Care

• TriWest / VA (within their visit structures)

Washington explicitly supports non-drug, hands-on care as part of therapeutic healthcare — not cosmetic or luxury wellness.

Important distinction:

➡️ 6 visits is what insurance must cover by law

➡️ 12 weeks at 2x/week is what doctors most often prescribe clinically

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🩺 What Doctors Typically Prescribe for Massage Therapy

When massage is prescribed for pain, injury, stress, or nervous-system regulation, the most common medical schedule is:

Therapeutic Massage Therapy

2 visits per week for 12 weeks

That equals 24 visits, which allows time for:

• Tissue change

• Reduced muscle guarding

• Nervous-system regulation

• Improved sleep and function

• Sustainable symptom relief

Six visits alone is rarely enough to create lasting change — which is why doctors commonly write longer prescriptions even though insurance may initially guarantee only part of that care.

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🧘‍♀️ Yes — Your Doctor Can Prescribe Massage for Stress & Anxiety

This surprises many patients.

Stress and anxiety are legitimate medical reasons for massage prescriptions in Washington. PCPs diagnose and treat stress disorders, anxiety, sleep disruption, and tension-based conditions every day.

Massage therapy is supported by research showing:

• Reduced cortisol (stress hormone)

• Lower heart rate and blood pressure

• Reduced anxiety scores

• Improved sleep

• Calmer nervous-system response

Because of this, doctors may use diagnoses such as:

• F41.9 – Anxiety disorder, unspecified

• F43.9 – Stress reaction

• G47.00 – Insomnia due to stress

• R45.89 – Other emotional symptoms

• Somatic dysfunction / muscle tension due to stress

And yes — insurance must still cover at least 6 visits when prescribed.

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🗣 How to Ask for Massage — Confidently and Correctly

Start with this:

“Hi Dr. ___, Washington law requires insurance plans to cover at least 6 medically-necessary massage visits per year. I’d like a prescription for therapeutic massage to help with my [pain / stress / anxiety / tension].”

If they ask about duration or frequency:

“I understand that many doctors prescribe massage for 12 weeks at two visits per week for therapeutic benefit. I’d like to follow that standard schedule.”

This frames your request as medically normal — not excessive.

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🧘 How to Request Whole-Body Treatment

Doctors respond best when you connect symptoms to function:

“My symptoms affect multiple areas — neck, shoulders, back, hips, and legs. A whole-body approach is medically appropriate and supports pain reduction and nervous-system regulation.”

Suggested wording for them:

“Therapeutic massage therapy. Treat full body or affected areas as needed.”

This single sentence protects your session scope and time.

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📜 Sample Prescription (Legally Compliant + Clinically Accurate)

Patient: [Your Name]

Diagnosis: Chronic neck pain / myofascial pain / anxiety / stress-related tension

Order: Therapeutic massage therapy

Frequency: 2x per week

Duration: 12 weeks

Session length: 60 minutes

Treatment areas: Full body / affected regions

Goal: Reduce pain, decrease anxiety/stress, improve function and sleep

Doctors love simple, compliant templates — and often copy this verbatim.

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🔬 What the Research Shows (Why This Schedule Makes Sense)

Pain & Function

Massage improves chronic neck pain, low-back pain, and myofascial tension — especially when delivered consistently over several weeks.

Stress & Anxiety

Massage therapy has been shown to:

• Lower cortisol

• Improve parasympathetic (vagal) tone

• Reduce anxiety scores

• Improve sleep and mood

Whole-Body Effects

Massage supports circulation, reduces muscle guarding, improves recovery, and calms the nervous system.

These are medically recognized outcomes — not spa claims.

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💬 If Your Doctor Hesitates, Say This

“Washington law supports therapeutic massage as medical care, and insurers must cover at least 6 visits. I’d like to follow the standard clinical schedule most providers use so I can get meaningful results.”

This usually resolves hesitation immediately.

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🌱 Final Encouragement: You Deserve Real Care

Stress, anxiety, pain, and tension are medical issues — not weaknesses and not things you need to “push through.”

Washington believes you deserve:

• Holistic healthcare

• Non-drug pain management

• Hands-on nervous-system support

• Whole-body treatment

• At least 6 massage visits by law — and more when medically appropriate

Your body.

Your health.