There's the rub - CBC.ca

[massage]

Questions about certification


During CBC's undercover conversation with Lily, she confirmed that she would provide a receipt for the massage for up to $80, which is the most that can be claimed through insurance for an hour service.

As proof, she texted a sample receipt with the customer's name blurred out.

The undercover reporter pointed out that Lily was planning to charge much more than $80 and asked if there was a way he would be able to claim that full amount.

She said that "each receipt can only be written $80, you can separate a few different dates, can also, OK [sic]?"

Wowk confirmed that clinics he's associated with offer receipts that enable clients to be reimbursed for their treatment from a wide range of Canadian health insurance companies.

"We're a registered, licensed, insurable TCM health practices clinic," he said. He said most of the workers at the 12 clinics he represents belong to the Massologists and Practitioners in Massage Association of Canada, based in Quebec.

'You're trying to persecute us. And I'm going to protect my wife from that.'

"It's essentially the same as the Massage Therapy Association of Saskatchewan," Wowk said. "They are a national registry for certified and trained professional health practitioners."

When CBC asked Wowk whether it was appropriate for his wife to be offering to write multiple receipts over different dates for a single service, he said it was a problem and that she shouldn't have made that offer.

The day after that interview, Lily's phone number was no longer featured in the ad.

"I repossessed her phone," Wowk said.

When CBC asked Wowk if he could arrange for an interview with his wife, he declined.

"You're trying to persecute us," he said. "And I'm going to protect my wife from that."

When CBC stopped by his home to ask her in person, she declined an interview.

After a series of interviews with CBC, Wowk removed Lily's name from the ads and is now promoting someone named Nana. He's also advertising for new "attendants" to work in the clinics.

This receipt was sent to CBC's reporter as proof that the fee could be claimed through insurance. (CBC)

This receipt was sent to CBC's reporter as proof that the fee could be claimed through insurance. (CBC)

The receipt Lily provided to CBC had a membership number for the Massologists and Practitioners in Massage Association of Canada.

CBC reached out to the association to see if the membership was legitimate, sending a copy of the receipt and a description of the undercover conversation.

The association replied a couple of days later, saying it "strongly condemned" the actions of Wowk's massage parlour in issuing that receipt and called his clinic a "fraudulent receipt issuer."

The association said the membership number belonged to a woman named Baiping Wang, who runs a massage parlour elsewhere in Regina.

The clinic run by Wang, who goes by the name Mia, is part of the network that Wowk works with. Wowk described Mia as "one of my customers. She's a dear friend."

Mia told CBC she had no idea that Wowk was using her certification for his business.

"My association screamed at me at 3 a.m."

"He bluffed and deceived and even made a fake receipt with my massage licence," Mia said through an interpreter.

She said after the association received CBC's query, the president of the organization called her in the middle of the night, saying her membership in the association was at risk.

"My association screamed at me at 3 a.m.," Mia said, adding that the scolding went on for hours.

She provided CBC with a copy of a legitimate receipt book provided by the association. She said Wowk's receipt looks nothing like that and is obviously fake.

The association demanded that Mia publish a clarifying public statement. In the April 10 edition of the Regina Leader-Post, Mia ran the following classified ad:

"I solemnly declare that some massage clinics are embezzling my name and my members professional practice certificate ID and issuing to customers fraudulent receipts [sic]," the ad said.

This massage parlour in Regina is part of the network Wowk works with. (Matthew Howard/CBC)

This massage parlour in Regina is part of the network Wowk works with. (Matthew Howard/CBC)

Wowk confirmed that he had been using Mia's membership number for his own business without telling her and conceded that he created the receipt using information he had as Mia's management consultant.

He said he's done nothing wrong.

"She's affiliated with my business. I'm a business management consultant to her. Why wouldn't I use her certification?" Wowk asked. "This is just standard processes."

CBC pointed out that both Mia and the massage association had indicated his activities were fraudulent.

"Well, Crown Life would disagree," he said, claiming the insurance company has paid for massages provided to one of his customers. CBC pointed out to Wowk that Crown Life Insurance was bought out in the 1990s and hasn't existed as a separate entity since then.

"Then I have it wrong in my memory," he said.

Over the course of multiple interviews, Wowk's explanation of his wife's employment status changed. Initially, when asked what his wife does for work, he said, "at the moment, nothing, because she doesn't have a work permit."

He noted that she was seeking immigration as his wife and that process was delayed.

"Because of all the COVID stuff, her application for permanent resident status and work permit application have drifted on for a year and a half now," he said.

As the interview went on, Wowk conceded that she did work at the massage parlour, texting clients, booking appointments and welcoming visitors to the clinic. But he insisted she didn't offer massage services.

"She meets all the requirements. Not her fault COVID has delayed her approval."

In a later interview, Wowk argued that it was perfectly legal for his wife to work in Canada because she had filed an application for a work permit, which he conceded has not yet been approved.

"She meets all the requirements," he said. "Not her fault COVID has delayed her approval."

He also ended up arguing that his wife was fully qualified to offer massage service.

"You do understand my wife, as well as all of our staff, have certifications and registrations?" Wowk said.

He offered an explanation for using Mia's qualifications, rather than his wife's, for billing purposes.

"We bill under other people's authorization certificate numbers," he said, in order to avoid putting his wife in a "difficult situation."