Highly qualified ACC acupuncture

Overcome injuries with expert ACC acupuncture in Auckland. Our highly qualified team have a proven track record of helping patients just like you.

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Acupuncture for ACC injuries

We’re not strangers to exercise and understand how frustrating an injury can be. With our acupuncturist Dr Roberta’s personal record of running an ultra-marathon of 134km, you can trust that we know what pain, injury, and recovery truly mean.

What is ACC?

The Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) is New Zealand’s comprehensive no-fault accident insurance scheme that covers accidental injuries for citizens, residents, and temporary visitors.

Is acupuncture covered?

Yes, acupuncture is covered by ACC when provided by a registered acupuncturist for registered claims. Typically, ACC funds 12 treatments, which must be completed within a year from the date of the accident, although there are exceptions.

Outside of this scope, ACC may consider acupuncture on a case-by-case basis for patients with a covered serious injury, a covered mental injury, or those who have had a recent surgical intervention for a covered injury.

Important to note, ACC currently funds two sets of treatment modalities within acupuncture services: conventional therapies and adjunct therapies. Conventional therapies consist of traditional acupuncture, Western acupuncture, laser acupuncture, electroacupuncture, and auricular acupuncture. Adjunct therapies include cupping, Gua Sha scraping, tuina massage, and moxibustion. ACC does not fund herbal plasters, liniments, herbalism, nutritional supplements, or ion-pumping cords.

How do I get acupuncture on ACC?

We don’t need a referral from your GP. When you visit us for acupuncture on ACC for a registered injury, simply bring along your claim number.

If your injury isn’t registered with ACC yet, your GP or physiotherapist can assist you. (Note: Acupuncturists cannot currently file new ACC claims, but this may change soon.)

How many acupuncture treatments does ACC cover?

Currently ACC will cover 12 acupuncture sessions within 12 months of the date of the injury.

What is the cost?

ACC partially subsidises acupuncture treatments for injuries that are a result of an accident or covered under the program. At our clinic there is a $45 co-payment or surcharge that patients need to pay for each treatment session. For more details and the latest prices, please visit acupuncture costs.

What it doesn’t cover

Your condition must be caused by an accident.

Anxiety, stress, depression, post-traumatic stress can only be covered if they have been linked to the covered injury.

Infertility treatment cannot be covered by ACC unless this is caused/linked to a covered injury. Most likely we will need prior approval from ACC to be able to treat you in this kind of situation.

ACC doesn’t normally cover degenerative conditions, illness or conditions related to aging, such as arthritis.

How long is my injury covered for?

  • If your ACC injury happened recently and you had no acupuncture for it: That’s great, we are able to treat you within a year of the injury without additional paperwork.
  • If your ACC injury happened less than a year ago, but you already had some treatment from another acupuncturist: We will need to know the precise number of acupuncture sessions you had so far. If the trigger number has been reached, we may be able to request a prior approval from ACC. However, in 2021 the corporation made some changes making it more difficult to request additional treatments. ACC made it clear that they will only approve additional treatments to patients with a mental injury, serious injury, and those who’ve recently had surgery.
  • If your ACC covered injury happened more than a year ago: We will need to request a prior approval from ACC. This can be done if your situation meets the criteria and includes submitting an additional information about your injury to the corporation. The processing times can vary depending on their workload.
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As seen in

Most common injuries addressed by ACC acupuncture

On our request The Accident Compensation Corporation provided the data on the injuries most commonly treated with acupuncture. The list below ranks these injuries in descending order of frequency.

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  • Lumbar sprains and strains: These injuries involve the lower back muscles and ligaments and can result in pain, stiffness, and limited mobility.
  • Neck sprains and strains: These involve injuries to the muscles and ligaments in the neck, which can cause pain, stiffness, and restricted neck movement.
  • Shoulder and upper arm sprains: These injuries involve the muscles and ligaments of the shoulder and upper arm, leading to pain, swelling, and limited shoulder movement.
  • Ankle sprains: These occur when ligaments in the ankle joint are stretched or torn, causing pain, swelling, and difficulty walking or bearing weight on the affected foot.
  • Rotator cuff injuries: These involve the group of muscles and tendons that stabilize the shoulder joint and can result in pain, weakness, and limited range of motion.
  • Knee and leg sprains: These involve the muscles, ligaments, and tendons in the knee and leg, causing pain, swelling, and restricted movement.
  • Thoracic sprains: These injuries affect the mid-back region and can result in pain, stiffness, and reduced mobility.
  • Elbow and forearm sprains: These involve the muscles and ligaments in the elbow and forearm, leading to pain, swelling, and limited arm movement.
  • Hip and thigh sprains: These injuries affect the muscles and ligaments in the hip and thigh area, causing pain, swelling, and restricted movement.
  • Sacroiliac ligament sprains: These involve the ligaments connecting the sacrum to the pelvis and can result in lower back pain and reduced mobility.
  • Wrist ligament sprains: These injuries affect the ligaments in the wrist, causing pain, swelling, and limited wrist movement.
  • Medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprains of the knee: These involve injury to the ligament on the inner side of the knee, leading to pain, swelling, and restricted knee movement.
  • Gastrocnemius muscle sprains: These involve the calf muscle and can result in pain, swelling, and limited ankle and foot movement.
  • Foot sprains: These injuries affect the ligaments in the foot, causing pain, swelling, and difficulty walking or bearing weight on the affected foot.
  • General back sprains: These involve the muscles and ligaments of the back, leading to pain, stiffness, and limited mobility.
  • Shoulder joint sprains: These affect the ligaments surrounding the shoulder joint, causing pain, swelling, and limited shoulder movement.
  • Achilles tendon sprains: These involve injury to the tendon connecting the calf muscles to the heel bone, causing pain, swelling, and difficulty walking or bearing weight on the affected foot.
  • Lumbar spine pain: This refers to pain in the lower back region, which can be caused by various factors, including muscle strains, ligament sprains, or underlying spinal issues.

Don’t let the injury hold you back. Take control of your recovery. Your well-being is worth the investment!

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