Arlington, Va. – The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) House of Delegates (HOD) met last week in Washington, D.C. during the 2015 National Chiropractic Leadership Conference (NCLC) and approved a resolution to make Medicare parity a top legislative and regulatory priority for the Association. The resolution, adopted by the House members, emphasizes the importance of allowing chiropractic physicians to practice and be reimbursed for the fullest extent of their licensure, training and competencies.
According to ACA President Anthony Hamm, DC, “The ACA will develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to ensure that doctors of chiropractic are recognized as being able to provide all existing Medicare services, as allowed under their state scope of practice, to beneficiaries.”
The federal Medicare program, which serves as a model for private insurance plans, currently serves more than 55 million individuals. Various projections forecast the number of people age 65 or older increasing by about one-third over the next decade. Chiropractic inclusion in the Medicare program was established in 1972 and has seen little change since then, other than elimination of the X-ray requirement in 1997.
Additional resolutions passed by ACA delegates during the annual meeting included:
The identification of six key elements that should be considered or included in a modern chiropractic practice act. Variability of state chiropractic regulations has created uncertainty and confusion for the general public, chiropractic patients and chiropractic physicians, impeding development and progress of the profession.
The establishment of a College of Pharmacology and Toxicology that would operate under the auspices of the ACA Council on Diagnosis and Internal Disorders. The purpose of the College is to further educate the chiropractic profession on clinical matters related to the widespread use of both prescription and over-the-counter medications and nutritional supplements. Currently, all U.S. chiropractic educational institutions require education in this subject, and programs such as the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners and EHR meaningful use criteria require participants to have familiarity with common medications and drug interactions.
The affirmation that the use of assessment tools to gather patient-reported outcomes is in accordance with best practices and evidence-informed care. Delegates strongly encouraged all chiropractic physicians to incorporate the consistent and appropriate use of such tools in practice to improve patient care and to facilitate the transition to electronic health record-keeping and quality reporting.
For more information on resolutions passed during the ACA House of Delegates meeting, contact ACA’s communications department.
NCLC is the premier national conference for doctors of chiropractic, chiropractic assistants and chiropractic doctoral students. The event brings together the best of chiropractic, including current and future leaders, by exposing them to important professional briefings, cutting-edge education programs and opportunities to meet with elected officials and colleagues.
ATTRIBUTION TO THE 2015 NATIONAL CHIROPRACTIC LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE IS REQUESTED IN ALL NEWS COVERAGE.
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The American Chiropractic Association based in Arlington, Va., is the largest professional association in the United States representing doctors of chiropractic. ACA promotes the highest standards of ethics and patient care, contributing to the health and well-being of millions of chiropractic patients. Visit us at www.acatoday.org.
