ICA Efforts
Produce New Tricare Bill for Military Dependents and Retirees
At the express request of the International Chiropractors Association (ICA), Representative Ed Schrock (R-VA), an influential member of the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, has developed legislation that would extend chiropractic benefits to military dependents and retirees through the federal TRICARE program.
Schrock and his staff worked for nearly a year with ICA Legislative Committee Chairman Dr. Michael S. McLean, a constituent of Schrock’s, to craft acceptable language and to build a foundation of bi-partisan support for the initiative. Those developmental efforts paid off when Illinois Representative Lane Evans, a leading Democrat well known for his support for chiropractic issues, agreed to be the primary co-sponsor for the ICA led initiative.
“It is an exciting and important effort that is now underway,” said McLean. “TRICARE represents one of the last federal programs in which beneficiaries are denied chiropractic coverage. The Schrock-Evans initiative represents a great opportunity for chiropractic and millions of beneficiaries who need and deserve chiropractic care, and ICA is determined to pass this initiative in the current Congress.”
A chiropractic initiative for TRICARE was one of the legislative priorities identified by the Chiropractic Coalition, in which the ICA, the World Chiropractic Alliance and the Federation of Straight Chiropractors and Organizations have joined together to more effectively promote chiropractic’s legislative interests. The ICA cooperated with those partner organizations and also offered other organizations an advance opportunity to comment on this initiative, in the hope of building the widest possible support within the chiropractic profession.
NCLC Held in Early March; ACA Named Top Lobbying Group
The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) held the National Chiropractic Legislative Conference on March 3-6 in Washington, D.C. This marks the 29th consecutive year that the ACA issued a call to action to DCs across America, requesting that they to come to Washington and unite in order to achieve new victories for the profession and patients.
The NCLC is chiropractic’s largest and most important public policy and advocacy event. For four days, in the spotlight of the nation’s capital city, NCLC sessions put the focus on the state and federal legislative and regulatory issues that matter to doctors of chiropractic and chiropractic patients. Through the efforts of its hundreds of attendees, supporters and sponsors, NCLC reminds elected leaders and government officials of the national reach and depth of the pro-chiropractic lobby and offers unique opportunities for professional development, continuing education and networking.
Congress and the Bush administration are now considering health policy issues that will have a significant impact on the future of chiropractic. This is the time to get involved and to help make NCLC larger and more successful than ever before.
The ACA runs one of the most influential advocacy operations in according to a listing of the 25 most effective grassroots lobbying organizations for health care in the United States. The ACA is number 19 in a ranking compiled by an official of the American Political Science Association.
Revised Chiropractic Guidelines Released
The Council on Chiropractic Practice (CCP), which published its first guidelines six years ago, has updated and revised its “Clinical Guideline Number 1: Vertebral Subluxation in Chiropractic Practice.” According to Dr. Matthew McCoy, editor of the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research and an advisor to this magazine, new literature and research required the revisions. According to a news release, the new guidelines include sections on such topics as peer review, record keeping, patient privacy, maternity care, heart rate variability, open adjusting roms and radiographic digitizing.
The CCP guidelines will again be reviewed in 2008. The guidelines are available for free on the web at www.ccp-guidelines.org.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Again Headlines ICA’s 2004 Symposium on Natural Fitness
The International Chiropractors Association (ICA) has been assured that the Arnold Fitness Weekend for 2004 includes Arnold, new governor of California, himself. The ICA’s 12th Annual Symposium on Natural Fitness will be held March 5-7. This multi-faceted program will feature the same kind of exciting, star-packed, innovative programs in conjunction with Arnold’s Fitness Weekend that has made it a highlight of the chiropractic calendar for over the past decade.
ICA’s Fitness Symposium has grown in size and diversity right along with the Arnold Schwarzenegger Fitness Weekend. Along with the symposium’s quality continuing education program and related events, participants in the ICA’s weekend program also attend special parts of the Arnold Fitness Weekend and Competitions, which includes the world’s largest Fitness Expo packed with leading sports nutrition, fitness equipment and publication services along with a world-class lineup of athletic demonstrations and competitions.
Judge to Hear Trigon Arguments in Late February
According to the American Chiropractic Association, a three-judge panel of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals was to hear oral arguments in the Trigon lawsuit in Richmond, Va., on Feb. 24. After hearing arguments, the judges will issue a judgment up to 90 days later. Look for future update on this case in Today’s Chiropractic.
Chiropractic Awards Announced
It was the season of awards this winter as Foot Levelers bestowed its Golden Achievement awards at the 2004 Parker Seminars in Las Vegas. Vickie Anne Palmer received a Golden Achievement Award for Chiropractic Commitment as Chairman of Palmer University’s board of trustees. Dr. Arlan Fuhr, co-founder of the Activator Method picked up the achievement award for clinical excellence, and Donald Kase and Dr. Frank Corbo, editors of Chiropractic Wellness & Fitness magazine picked up the award for advancement of chiropractic through publishing excellence. Cleveland Chiropractic College’s president Dr. Carl Cleveland III picked up the Dr. Monte Greenawalt Chiropractic Excellence Award.
Meanwhile, the World Chiropractic Alliance announced Dr. Leona Fischer of Naperville, Ill., as its Chiropractor of the Year award. Fischer is most recently known for her work on the Chiropractic Advisory Committee to the U.S. Veterans Administration, providing advice and working to make chiropractic available to veterans. Dr. Fischer is a former medic with the U.S. Navy Special Operations, and has been awarded Navy Achievement Medals for servicing servicemen who suffered severe trauma from a parachute accident.
Fighting for Chiropractic Coverage in Wisconsin
In mid-February Wisconsin chiropractors effectively stopped proposed legislation that would have blocked some patients from receiving insurance reimbursement for chiropractic care.
At stake was a proposal from the state assembly to approve chambers of commerce to provide an insurance program to Wisconsin small business. Wisconsin DCs were up in arms in February over the fact that the proposed insurance program would not have covered chiropractic. The Chamber of Commerce insurance plan for small businesses was designed to provide discounted insurance to some of the state’s independent business, which are facing the mounting costs of health insurance.
On Wed, Feb. 18, according to a report in the Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune, many chiropractors closed offices to travel to the state capitol, Madison, to speak out against the proposed insurance plan. Russ Leonard of the Wisconsin Chiropractic Association told the Daily Tribune that the failure of the bill to pass was related to Wisconsin chiropractors rallying against the bill.
ACC and RAC
Joint Conference Emphasizes
Relation Between Scholarship and Education
The ACC-RAC 2004 Conference was to be held March 11-14 in Las Vegas. This cutting-edge conference is the product of the Association of Chiropractic Colleges, which emphasizes educational structure, administration and teaching; and the Research Agenda Conference, which focuses on the development of scientific knowledge, skills and attitudes. The combination of the two programs continues to enhance and nurture the natural relationship between chiropractic scholarship and education.
Once again, the conference is jointly sponsored by the Bureau of Health Professions U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, Association of Chiropractic Colleges, NIH, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine through the Consortial Center for Chiropractic Research.
The program continues to have broad appeal to the entire profession, not just the educational and scientific communities in chiropractic. The theme of this year’s meeting was “Best Practices” and it featured multifaceted presentations and discussion groups.
Schulman Named Chiropractor of the Year
Dr. Mark Schulman, a 1972 graduate of New York College of Chiropractic and a chiropractor from Princeton, N.J., was awarded the Chirorpactor of the Year award at Parker Seminars’s January conference in Las Vegas. Dr. Fabrizio Mancini, president of Parker College of Chiropractic and Parker Seminars, attributed Schulman’s receipt of the award to his “exemplary quality” and “dedication to his profession.”
Palmer Announces Reasoning, Faces More Challenges
Palmer College of Chiropractic has continued to face sharp criticism following the resignation of school president Dr. Guy Riekeman, who became president of Palmer in 1998. Thomas and Mary Ann Morgan, who headed the school’s capital campaign, were the most recent supporters to step down. The Morgans attributed their resignation to the departure of Riekeman in a letter to the board that was partially reprinted in Iowa’s Sioux City Journal. The capital campaign is designed to raise $35 million for the Palmer Chiropractic University System.
The school issued a news release in mid-February attributing Riekeman’s resignation and restructuring at Palmer to Riekeman’s opposition of such board of trustees motions as to elect two board members to fill vacant positions, a revised structure of the board’s committees, employment of Larry Patten to collect information for the board, and allow the board to approve all hiring and salary increases in the Palmer Chiropractic University System. Also proposed was an audit of the University System, a move that Riekeman did not oppose. Board chair Vickie Palmer said in a statement, “Riekeman opposed all of these resolutions except the audit and provided the board with the ultimatum that, if the resolutions were not removed, he would resign.”
Closely following the resignation of Riekeman, the school renamed its well-known Lyceum program (scheduled for Aug. 12-14) to, simply, Homecoming.
Dogs May Protect Kids from Allergies
In a study presented at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology conference in January, researchers found that having a dog present during a baby’s first year of life is associated with a reduction in allergies.
A study was introduced that surveyed 286 newborn children to find out whether or not exposure to a dog early on actually protects them against allergies later in life. Thirty-three percent had allergies later on without the dog as a newborn; that’s compared to 19 percent who had allergies if they had a dog—a significant protective effect.
Researchers proposed that perhaps when a newborn is exposed to a dog, it actually revs up the immune system, and those same sorts of cells that might help ward off allergies later in life.
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