Resource · Coverage
Does Pacific Blue Cross, Sun Life, Manulife, Canada Life or GreenShield cover counselling?
Whether your plan covers counselling depends on the plan your employer bought, not on the insurer that administers it. Pacific Blue Cross, Sun Life, Manulife, Canada Life and GreenShield all administer plans that reimburse a Registered Clinical Counsellor and plans that do not. The way to find out is one question to the insurer or one search of the plan booklet: is a Registered Clinical Counsellor (or, in Alberta, a Canadian Certified Counsellor) listed as an eligible paramedical practitioner, and what is the annual maximum. The table below gives the short answer for each insurer.
The insurer's name is on the card. The answer is in the plan, and the plan was written by your employer.
9 min read · Updated
Short answers, insurer by insurer
| Insurer | Does it cover a Registered Clinical Counsellor? | Where to check | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pacific Blue Cross | Many of its BC plans do, depending on the plan; some list psychologists only | The member portal, under coverage, or the plan booklet | Has accepted direct claims from RCCs since 11 July 2025. This practice is pay-and-submit, so you claim the receipt yourself |
| Sun Life | Sun Life added clinical counsellors and psychotherapists to its standard extended health plans from 12 May 2024; an employer’s own plan wording still decides | my Sun Life app or mysunlife.ca, under extended health | Sun Life Provider Search, formerly Lumino Health, is a directory of providers. It is not your coverage: the plan’s practitioner list is |
| Manulife | Many group plans do, under a psychologist, social worker or counsellor benefit, depending on the plan | The benefit booklet or the member portal | Wording like “or equivalent” is for your plan administrator to confirm |
| Canada Life | Plans that cover counsellors list them under a mental-health practitioner benefit, depending on the plan | My Canada Life at Work | Canada Life absorbed Great-West Life, so an older booklet may carry that name |
| GreenShield | Depends on the plan: some list clinical counsellors; some list only psychologists, social workers or psychotherapists | GreenShield+ (member site and app) | GreenShield also runs its own counselling platform with its own practitioners. Whether the plan pays for sessions there is a separate line from claiming another counsellor’s receipt |
If your plan year ends on 31 December
On a plan that runs on the calendar year, the date of the session decides which year’s maximum it counts against. A session held on or before 31 December is claimed against this year’s; one held in January counts against next year’s, whenever the receipt goes in.
Submitting the claim is a separate deadline. Each plan sets its own and they vary widely, from weeks after the service to well into the following year; Pacific Blue Cross, for one, says the deadline differs by policy. The booklet or member portal states yours.
Not every plan runs on the calendar year. Some run on an anniversary year that turns over on another date, and student plans have their own plan year. Check that the plan lists a Registered Clinical Counsellor and which year it runs on before planning around 31 December.
Unused paramedical maximums generally do not carry over into the next year. Some health spending accounts do carry an unused balance forward one year, which is a feature of the account rather than of the counselling maximum; the administrator can confirm both, and whether the account accepts a counselling receipt at all.
The longer version, with claim deadlines for some BC plans: using counselling benefits before the year ends.
The question that settles it, whichever insurer you have
Extended health plans reimburse eligible practitioners under a paramedical or mental-health benefit. The plan document lists which designations count. Psychologists are listed on many. Registered Clinical Counsellors are on many and not all. Canadian Certified Counsellors are named on plans more often in Alberta, where counselling is not a regulated profession; how to check a counsellor in Alberta shows where that certification is looked up.
So the question is not "does Sun Life cover counselling". It is: "Under my plan, is a Registered Clinical Counsellor an eligible practitioner for the mental-health or paramedical benefit, and what is the annual maximum and any per-visit maximum?" Ask that, in those words, and you have your answer in one call.
Both counsellors at this practice are RCCs registered with the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors; one also holds the CCC. Receipts carry the registration number the insurer needs.
Pacific Blue Cross and counselling
Pacific Blue Cross administers a large share of BC employer plans, including many public-sector ones. Many of its plans list Registered Clinical Counsellors under psychology or counselling benefits; some list psychologists only. The plan booklet, or the member portal under "coverage", shows the practitioner list and the maximum.
What to check: the exact designation wording, whether the counselling maximum is shared with psychology, and whether a physician's referral is required. Many plans do not, depending on the plan; a few do, and it is cheaper to know before the first session than after.
Sun Life and counselling
Sun Life says it added clinical counsellors and psychotherapists to its standard extended health plans from 12 May 2024. Plans still vary by employer, because an employer can buy different wording. The member site and app show the covered practitioners under the extended health benefit, usually as a list of paramedical services with a per-year maximum each. Search the list for "clinical counsellor" and for "psychologist"; if only the second appears, the plan may still cover a counsellor under a combined mental-health benefit, and the plan document or a call settles it.
What to check: whether "registered clinical counsellor" is named, the maximum, and whether it is per practitioner type or combined. Sun Life Provider Search, which used to be called Lumino Health, finds providers near you; a counsellor’s absence from it says nothing about whether your plan reimburses her.
Manulife and counselling
Manulife group plans list eligible practitioners in the benefit booklet and in the member portal. Counsellors appear on many plans under "psychologist, social worker or counsellor" wording with a combined maximum; others name psychologists alone. Where the wording is "or equivalent" or "registered counsellor", the plan administrator, not the insurer's general line, is the person who can confirm whether an RCC qualifies.
What to check: the exact wording, the combined maximum, and whether pre-authorisation is needed for any of it.
Canada Life and counselling
Canada Life, which absorbed Great-West Life, administers plans with a similar range. The member site lists paramedical practitioners and maximums; plans that cover counsellors commonly do so under a mental-health practitioner benefit alongside psychologists and social workers.
What to check: the designation, the maximum, and, for anyone in Alberta, whether the plan names the Canadian Certified Counsellor rather than the RCC. Alberta plans more often do, because counselling is not a regulated profession there; counselling coverage in Alberta covers what Alberta Health Care does and does not pay.
GreenShield and counselling
GreenShield administers group plans with the same range as the others: some name clinical counsellors as eligible practitioners, some name only psychologists, social workers or psychotherapists. GreenShield+, its member site and app, shows the practitioner list and the maximum.
GreenShield also runs its own counselling platform, with practitioners it vets, and some plans pay for a set amount of time there. That is a separate benefit from the paramedical maximum that reimburses a counsellor you choose yourself, so ask which one your plan has, or whether it has both.
What to check: whether a clinical counsellor is an eligible practitioner under the extended health benefit, the maximum, and whether a counselling platform benefit sits beside it.
The same check, for any insurer
What that buys here: an individual session is $140 for 50 minutes and a couples session $175 for 50 minutes, paid by card at booking, with a receipt carrying the counsellor’s registration number. If the plan pays the whole fee, a $500 annual maximum covers about 3 individual sessions (2 couples sessions) and a $1,500 maximum about 10 (8 couples). Many plans do not pay the whole fee: some cap each visit and some reimburse a percentage, which leaves part of every session with you and changes the count. The cost estimator does the same arithmetic with your plan’s own numbers.
| Ask or search for | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| "Registered Clinical Counsellor" as an eligible practitioner | The whole question. If it is not there, ask whether a combined mental-health benefit applies. |
| Annual maximum, and any per-visit maximum | A $500 maximum is a few sessions; a $1,500 maximum is a course of counselling. The paragraph above counts them at this practice’s fees. |
| Combined or separate from psychology | A combined maximum is shared with a psychologist you may also see. |
| Physician referral required? | Usually no. Occasionally yes, and it is easier before the first session. |
| Plan year | Calendar or anniversary. Coverage resets at one of them, and timing a course of sessions across the reset is legitimate. |
| Virtual sessions with an RCC eligible, on the same maximum? | Plans that list an RCC usually treat a video session like an in-person one, but it depends on the plan, and every session at this practice is by video. |
| Health spending account | Narrower than it looks for an RCC receipt. “If the answer is no”, below, says why, and what a wellness account can do instead. |
Once you know what the plan says, the next step is a fifteen-minute call to see whether the fit is right. Book a free consultation.
If the answer is no
MSP will not fill the gap: is counselling covered by MSP in BC explains why. Other routes depend on the plan. A health spending account pays only what the CRA accepts as a medical expense, and the CRA’s list of authorized medical practitioners has no counsellor entry for British Columbia, so ask the administrator whether it will accept an RCC receipt before relying on it. A wellness or lifestyle spending account, if your employer offers one, is broader and can usually fund counselling, as a taxable benefit. The medical expense tax credit generally does not apply to RCC fees in BC until psychotherapy is regulated (from 29 November 2027); check with whoever prepares your return. And reduced-fee or public options exist and are listed on the low-cost counselling page.
What this practice will not do is tell you that a plan covers something. That is the plan's job, and getting it wrong costs you money after the fact, which is the outcome this page exists to prevent.
Common questions
Does Blue Cross cover counselling in BC?
Many Pacific Blue Cross extended health plans reimburse counselling with a Registered Clinical Counsellor, depending on the plan, up to an annual maximum the employer chose, commonly between $500 and $1,500. It is the plan, not Blue Cross, that sets the amount and the eligible designations, so the two-minute check is to log in to the member site, open the benefit booklet and search for "counsellor". The practice gives you a receipt with the counsellor's registration number and you claim it.
Does Pacific Blue Cross cover a Registered Clinical Counsellor?
Many Pacific Blue Cross plans do and some do not; it depends on the plan your employer chose. Check the practitioner list in the member portal or the booklet for "Registered Clinical Counsellor", and note the annual maximum.
Does Sun Life cover counselling in BC?
It depends on the plan. Search your coverage for "clinical counsellor"; if only psychologists appear, ask whether a combined mental-health benefit applies to an RCC.
Does Manulife cover counselling with an RCC?
On many plans, under a combined psychologist, social worker or counsellor benefit. Where the wording is unclear, the plan administrator at your employer can confirm whether an RCC qualifies.
Does Canada Life cover counselling?
Plans that do usually list counsellors under a mental-health practitioner benefit. For Alberta plans, check whether the Canadian Certified Counsellor is the designation named.
Does GreenShield cover counselling?
It depends on the plan. Some GreenShield plans list clinical counsellors as eligible practitioners and some list only psychologists, social workers or psychotherapists; GreenShield+ shows yours. GreenShield also runs its own counselling platform, and a plan may pay for time there as a separate benefit from reimbursing a counsellor you choose.
What is Lumino Health?
Sun Life’s provider directory, now called Sun Life Provider Search. It helps plan members find providers; it does not decide what your plan pays. Whether a Registered Clinical Counsellor is reimbursed is in your plan’s practitioner list, and a counsellor who is not in the directory can still issue a receipt you claim.
Is online counselling covered the same as in person?
Plans that list an RCC usually reimburse a video session on the same terms as in person, but this depends on the plan. Ask: are virtual sessions with an RCC eligible, and on the same maximum?
Does Westpeak Wellness bill my insurer directly?
No. This practice is pay-and-submit: you pay at booking and receive a receipt carrying the counsellor’s registration number, which you submit to the insurer. Pacific Blue Cross accepts direct claims from RCCs, so another practice may bill it for you; this one does not.
Is counselling covered by MSP?
No. MSP does not cover private counselling. It covers physicians and psychiatrists. The comparison is on the MSP vs extended health page.
Do unused counselling benefits carry over?
It depends on the plan. Unused paramedical maximums, which is where counselling usually sits, generally do not carry over: what is left at the end of the plan year is gone. Some health spending accounts carry an unused balance forward one year. Whether your plan runs on the calendar year or an anniversary year, and what happens to an unused balance, is in the booklet or the member portal; using counselling benefits before the end of the year sets out the dates.
What if my plan only lists psychologists?
Ask whether a combined mental-health benefit applies, and whether the employer offers a wellness or lifestyle spending account, which can usually fund counselling as a taxable benefit. A health spending account and the medical expense tax credit are narrower for an RCC receipt in BC; if the answer is no explains both.
Sources
- Pacific Blue Cross, “Is your practitioner registered?” (BCACC among the counselling associations; read 1 Oct 2026)
- Sun Life, adding clinical counsellors and psychotherapists to standard extended health plans from 12 May 2024 (read 1 Oct 2026)
- Manulife, mental health and counselling services: practitioner types and maximums vary by plan (read 1 Oct 2026)
- Canada Life, mental health in workplace benefits: check your plan in My Canada Life at Work (read 1 Oct 2026)
- GreenShield, mental health services FAQ: its counselling platform and the practitioners it vets (read 13 Oct 2026)
- Sun Life, Provider Search and profiles (formerly Lumino Health Provider Search; read 13 Oct 2026)
- BC Association of Clinical Counsellors
- Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association
- Canada Revenue Agency, authorized medical practitioners for the medical expense tax credit (read 1 Oct 2026)
- Pacific Blue Cross provider notice, “Direct Billing for Mental Health Providers in BC Starting July 11” (2025; read 1 Oct 2026)
General information, not clinical, financial, or legal advice. Coverage and service details change, verify anything decision-critical directly with the provider or insurer. If you are in crisis, call or text 9-8-8 (Canada, 24/7) or 310-6789 for BC Mental Health Support.
Who you would talk to
Taking new clients and seeing people across BC by secure video. Each is a Registered Clinical Counsellor; the registration is on the profile and can be checked on the BCACC register.
Camille Granda, RCC, CCC
English and Tagalog · Trauma, Anxiety and chronic stress, Grief, loss and life transitions
In her words: “I want sitting with me to feel like the biggest belly breath you have ever taken.”
Savneet Singh, RCC
English and Punjabi · Anxiety, Depression, Trauma and attachment
In her words: “Comforting, safe and supportive, is what I aim for.”
Individual sessions are $140 for 50 minutes, after a free 15-minute consultation; card at booking.
Many extended health plans reimburse a Registered Clinical Counsellor, depending on the plan, so check yours; MSP does not cover private counselling. All fees.
Questions about cost or coverage?
A free 15-minute consultation is a good place to ask them, before committing to anything.
Book Free ConsultationNot ready to book? Send a line about what is going on. A reply comes within one business day.
Or a smaller step: What counselling costs in BC · What sessions cost · What the free 15 minutes is like
Looking on behalf of someone else? What to send them, and what not to, including the funded routes most people do not know they qualify for.
Where this leads
If this is close to your own situation, there is a page written for it: Counselling support for BC employers and HR.
Where you are
Online counselling across British Columbia
Every session is by secure video, so the counsellor you see does not depend on where you live. Each city page covers coverage, local public services and who is taking new clients there.