Digest Number 830

[Guest guest]

David,

 

I often write this stuff late at night and the clarity of my writing

sometimes reflects it. I have exactly the same concerns you list in your

response. For three years I devoted a debilitating amount of time to the

effort to obtain the statutory right to practice acupuncture in AZ.

that we now have - but no more than that. We were warned off any attempt

to put herbs into the scope of practice of the proposed licensure bill. The

AMA lobbyist informed the the Ac Society of AZ that if the herbs were

included in the scope of practice or the words 'docto'r or 'physician' were

to be allowable as titles that the AMA would put the full force of their

political strength into defeating the bill. If those sectins and terms were

left out they would not actively oppose the bill.

 

I believe the effort to co-opt practitioners of OM began several years ago.

When I wrote " My recommendation for our profession is to quit trying to

crash a party at which we aren't wanted. " I meant that we shouldn't bother

with the dangled carrot of acceptance by the

allopathic medicine system. " We don't need no steenking badges. " and we

don't need allopathic acceptance. MD's have very poor credibility with

their patients and the insurance companies are targets of rage. The big TV

news in AZ tonight is that PacifiCare has instituted a $2400 (approx.)

copay per TREATMENT for chemotherapy and tripled dialysis copays from

$25 to $75.The public doesn't believe the MD's and Ins. Co.'s judgements

about

what therapies are in the public's interest. The allopathic system is

collapsing

under it's own weight. We should quit wasting our time and effort on

convincing the powers-that-be that we're worthy because they ain't the

powers-that-be no more. The public is the power and the public badly wants

our services.

 

What we need are ways to make OM financially accesssible to the public.

When the public has access to us, our incomes will rise and teachers will be

better paid because the demand for practitioners will be high and good

students will be attracted who will earn decent livings and contribute for

lobbyists to help ensure the existence of the profession and the public will

support the continued availability of services it values etc... You know

the drill. This requires statutory sanction (and thus regulatory

provisions) so that we have the opportunity to " ...achieve respect and a

viable income ....(by making) our services accessible to the mainstream,

deliver(ing) high quality care, and practic(ing) medicine and business in

an ethical manner. In other words, get results and charge a reasonable

price. " I think that's the fastest route to a well-founded independent

profession.

 

Yes, by all means, we must " get our act together professionally " .

 

Joe

 

Message: 9

Thu, 27 Dec 2001 14:36:13 EST

acuman1

Re: Digest Number 817

 

While the below is certainly true in many respects, there is still the

regulatory aspect of our practice that we have to include in the equation.

If we do not involve ourselves in professional processes, we stand to be the

only profession that has herbs within our scope and training, but is

restricted by availability to our use of them. Peripherally, this could also

expand, over decades, to only being able to do acupuncture to patients by

direction of physicians on the points specified by those physicians. Coming

from a state (PA) where we are just removing the yoke of actual physician

supervisorship and having a " filiform needles only " scope after 15 years,

assuming that all goes well, I understand the need of a " profession " more

than those who have had the advantage of predecessors with the vision to

move professional legislation through their state. I am a big market buff,

but I do see the writing on the wall that if we don't get our act together

professionally, we stand to lose access to many herbs, if not all of them,

and the patients lose access to the only professional people who know how

to use them properly.