Pricing
At Ottawa Community Acupuncture we use a sliding-scale payment system to help support our vision of affordable & accessible health care
What is a Sliding-Scale?
A sliding-scale is a payment system focused on inclusivity and social financial awareness. Instead of there being one set fee linked to the service, there is a range of payment options to choose from.
The aim of a sliding-scale is to help make a service or event more affordable to more people.
Sliding-scales are designed to be approached with a MIYHLIYD mindset: more if you have, less if you don’t. They ask us to take a minute and think to ourselves: what are my financial resources at the moment? How stressed or pressed am I in relation to money right now? What might other people’s experiences be?
Our Sliding-Scale
OCA's sliding-scale is currently set at $25-$40, and any dollar amount can be used between those two numbers. A $36 payment? Sure. Perhaps $28? No problem. All increments welcome! And you don't have to pay the exact same number each time you come.
When deciding what amount to pay, we ask that you use our Financial Resources Inventory as your guide. These questions create an outline of understanding and help ensure the scale is used properly.
A misconception we'd like to clarify: the top of our sliding-scale is not meant to be parallel to the highest level of wealth in our society. Private acupuncture treatments range from $90-$120 or more! Some community acupuncture clinics have scales ranging from $30-$70.
We choose to keep our rates as affordable as they are because we know that acupuncture care requires a course of treatment for the healing to take root. Our sliding-scale is designed not only to be inclusive but also to help people come in regularly and/or frequently so they can get better.