Legislative Committee Chair, Michael McLean, DC,
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, and
Legislative Day Co-Chair, Stephanie Youngblood, DC

Hundreds of DCs Converge on the Nation’s Capital for Chiropractic Coalition Legislative Day

It was an exciting day in Washington, D.C. on April 14^th when hundreds of DCs, students, family and staff gathered on Capitol Hill to promote chiropractic’s legislative agenda in the US Congress and to demonstrate to Members of the US House and Senate the resolve and strength of the profession. 2005 Legislative Day participants gathered in one of the most impressive rooms in the US Senate to hear from a powerful array of top national legislative leaders including Nevada Senator and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, Utah Senator Orin Hatch, Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy, South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint, California Representative Bob Filner and New Hampshire Representative Jeb Bradley.  All of the speakers acknowledged the size and enthusiasm of the crowd and stressed the importance of making each individual’s voice heard on issues of concern and importance.

“To have national leaders as influential as Senator Kennedy and Senator Hatch in the room at the same time to speak to chiropractors is a very exciting achievement for the Chiropractic Coalition,” said ICA Legislative Committee Chairman Dr. Michael S. McLean.  “The strength demonstrated by the Coalition partners, and the spirit of cooperation and commitment to common goals, are of great benefit to the chiropractic profession and strong, encouraging and motivating factors as we work to move chiropractic forward on Capitol Hill,” said Dr. McLean.  Senators Reid and Hatch have the distinction of having chiropractors in their immediate families and spoke with great understanding about the chiropractic adjustment and how important it is to the health and well-being of people of all ages.

Among the many highlights of Legislative Day 2005 was an inspiring address by New Hampshire Representative Jeb Bradley, who had just introduced legislation at the request of the Chiropractic Coalition, HR 1594, the Chiropractic Health Parity for Military Retirees and Dependents Act, which would provide reasonable direct access to quality chiropractic services in the federal Tri-Care Program for military dependents and retirees.  The language of this vitally important bill includes provisions that:

1. Require that chiropractic services may be provided only by a doctor of chiropractic;
2. Provide that a covered beneficiary may select and have direct access to chiropractic services without the requirement of a referral from another health care provider;
3. Include the diagnosis (including diagnostic X-ray tests), correction, and management of vertebral subluxations or neuro-musculoskeletal conditions, and such other chiropractic services determined appropriate by the Secretary.

The Chiropractic Coalition urges all Members of Congress to contact Rep. Bradley’s office and ask to be added to the initial list of co-sponsors of this important bill.

The participants in Legislative Day 2005 were also excited to hear Senator Kennedy speak about his support for military commissions for doctors of chiropractic and his support for the Coalition Tri-Care initiative.  Senator Kennedy noted that legislation was passed over 12 years ago authorizing the Secretary of Defense to commission DCs as career health care officers in all of the uniformed services, and stated that he felt that it was, “…high time that this authority was exercised.”

Representative Bob Filner, a passionate and articulate chiropractic advocate in Congress, addressed the gathering with great enthusiasm, encouraging all present to go back to their respective communities and mobilize not just other chiropractors, but patients and their families to support the chiropractic legislative agenda.  Representative Filner has introduced legislation which the Coalition strongly supports, HR 917, which would provide for direct access to chiropractic care for Veterans, with no need for a referral. It also authorizes “periodic and preventative chiropractic examinations and services.”  This important bill will undo the effects of the recommendations of the Veterans Affairs Chiropractic Advisory Committee, which inexplicably voted to recommend chiropractic care by referral only, thus limiting veterans’ rights and often compelling them to accept second-choice care that is many times more expensive and at the same time often less effective for their needs.

ICA and the Chiropractic Coalition partners want to thank all who participated and to announce that a date for the Coalition’s next Legislative Day has already been set.  Mark your calendars now and plan to be in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, May 4, 2006 for another great chiropractic legislative gathering.

The Chiropractic Coalition was founded in November 2002 by three major chiropractic organizations, the International Chiropractors Association (ICA), the World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA) and the Federation of Straight Chiropractors and Organizations (FSCO).  The mission of this cooperative effort is the promotion of chiropractic science and practice as a separate and distinct, drugless and non-surgical approach to health that mobilizes the body’s natural healing abilities, without intrusion into the realms of other professions.