At the request of several members of Congress, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC” or “Commission”) is extending its deferral of enforcement of the Identity Theft Red Flags Rule (“Red Flags Rule” or “the Rule”)¹ until June 1, 2010.

DAVENPORT, IA – (November 4, 2009) – Following what might be the most expansive search for a chiropractic college leader in the history of the profession, the Palmer College of Chiropractic Board of Trustees is pleased to announce the unanimous selection of Dennis Marchiori, D.C., Ph.D., D.A.C.B.R., as chancellor of Palmer College. His appointment will take effect December 15, 2009. Dr. Marchiori was approved by the Board of Trustees at its October 30, 2009, meeting in Daytona Beach Shores, Florida. He was recommended to the full Board after a comprehensive interview process led by a Board-appointed, seven-member ad hoc Succession Planning and Search Committee. The Committee was assisted by Diversified Search, a Philadelphia-based executive search firm, and a five-member search advisory group consisting of notable chiropractic, higher education and community leaders. “I’m very pleased with the process we followed to identify who we all believe is the most qualified person to lead Palmer College,” said Mr. Ken Koupal, chair of the Committee. “Diversified Search, the Committee and everyone involved worked as a true team to recruit and examine a strong pool of 27 internal and external candidates. In the end, we all recognized that the best candidate, Dr. Marchiori, was right here at Palmer.” “From the outset, our goal was to be thorough and committed to finding the right candidate to lead this institution,” said Trevor Ireland, D.C., chairman of the Palmer Board of Trustees. “We will never lose sight of our responsibility for doing what is best for Palmer College and we’re confident that, under Dr. Marchiori’s proven leadership, we will continue to uphold that responsibility.” “For more than a century, Palmer College has been leading the chiropractic profession and contributing to the communities surrounding our campuses,” said Dr. Marchiori. “I am honored to continue the successes of the past, including recent regional accreditation and growing extramural research grants, as we advance the College through its next phase of accomplishments. We have energized students and a dedicated team of staff, faculty and administrators to promote our educational mission. Palmer College is an exceptional organization and well-positioned for future success. I’m truly honored to have been selected chancellor.” A Palmer Product A native of western Pennsylvania, Dr. Marchiori completed his prerequisite work at Penn State University before earning his Bachelor’s of Science at Regents College in Albany, New York. He graduated with his Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College’s Davenport Campus in 1990 and went on to earn his Master of Science degree in Anatomy at Palmer in 1992. In 1995, he completed a three-year residency in radiology at Palmer College leading to Diplomate status with the American Chiropractic Board of Radiology. Dr. Marchiori received his doctorate in Policy, Planning and Leadership from the University of Iowa in 2005. He has had faculty appointments in the Research, and Diagnosis and Radiology departments. His administrative tenure includes the roles of department chair, dean, vice president of Academic Affairs for the Davenport Campus, and vice chancellor for Academics for the College system. In addition to his teaching and administrative service, he has published numerous scientific articles and two editions of a comprehensive textbook in radiology, titled “Clinical Imaging.” “With nearly 20 years invested with Palmer College, Dr. Marchiori has proven himself as a leader in chiropractic and higher education,” said Dr. Ireland. “There is a great sense of pride in watching someone like him live the American Dream, advancing through the administrative levels and excelling with each new chapter.” Passing the Baton In assuming the chancellor role, Dr. Marchiori will succeed Mr. William Wilke, a respected Quad-City area businessman and a member of the Palmer Board since 1998. In December 2008, following the departure of Chancellor Larry Patten, the Board asked Mr. Wilke to serve until a complete and thorough search could be conducted. “While we are excited about the future of Palmer College under Dr. Marchiori’s leadership, I want to express the Board’s sincere gratitude to Mr. Wilke for his service during the past year,” said Dr. Ireland. “His guidance and management expertise played a key role in so many of our accomplishments.” Dr. Marchiori lives in Bettendorf, Iowa, with his wife, Cheryl, and four children: Isabella, Sophia, Tony and Olivia. An investiture ceremony is being planned for early next year.

Greeley, Colo. – On Friday, October 16, the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE) broke ground on a 15,000 square foot, $2.5 million dollar building. The target completion date is May 27, 2010. NBCE President Dr. Vernon Temple along with members of the NBCE Executive Committee Drs. Edwin Weathersby, Richard Cole and Ted Scott, and Daniel Saint-Germain, President of the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards and Chair of the NBCE Developmental Committee, were on hand to welcome special guests, including Larry Steel, Architect. Opening remarks were made by Horace Elliott, NBCE Executive Vice President, Greeley Mayor Ed Clark, Greeley Chamber of Commerce President Sarah MacQuiddy, and Terry Drahota representing Drahota Construction of Fort Collins, Colorado. Other special guests recognized were County Commissioner Sean Conway and Greeley City Council member Maria Seacrest, Greeley City Manager Roy Otto, Bruce Biggi of the City Economic Development office, and several academic vice presidents of chiropractic colleges. According to President Temple, “The new building represents the growth and expansion necessary for the NBCE and its international component, the International Board of Chiropractic Examiners, to maintain the high standard we have set for testing in the health care community.” He continued, “In the last 46 years, this organization has set the standard in testing—not just in chiropractic, but in the general standardized testing community. NBCE has gained the recognition and confidence of the general public and state regulatory boards as well as unified the profession by providing standardized testing that assesses the ability of each doctor of chiropractic." The new building will house state-of-the-art audiovisual and teleconferencing equipment that will enhance the ability of test committee members to develop future examinations testing basic science and clinical knowledge and the demonstration of clinical competency. Each year more than 300 visitors, representing state licensing boards, chiropractic college faculty, and subject matter experts meet at the NBCE to develop standardized written and practical examinations for candidates seeking chiropractic licensure throughout the United States and in many foreign countries. The organization has been headquartered in Greeley, Colo., since 1978 and moved to its current campus in west Greeley in 1990.

A report, prepared by a global leader for trusted human resources and related financial advice, products and services, finds that the addition of chiropractic care for the treatment of low back and neck pain will likely increase value-for-dollar in US employer-sponsored health benefit plans. Authored by Niteesh Choudhry, MD, PhD, and Arnold Milstein, MD, the report can be fully downloaded at: (Full Report) Executive Summary: Low back and neck pain are extremely common conditions that consume large amounts of health care resources. Chiropractic care, including spinal manipulation and mobilization, are used by almost half of US patients with persistent back-pain seeking out this modality of treatment. The peer-reviewed scientific literature evaluating the effectiveness of US chiropractic treatment for patients with back and neck pain suggests that these treatments are at least as effective as other widely used treatments. However, US cost-effectiveness studies have methodological limitations. High quality randomized cost-effectiveness studies have to date only been performed in the EU. To model the EU study findings for US populations, researchers applied US insurer-payable unit price data from a large database of employer-sponsored health plans. The findings rest on the assumption that the relative difference in the cost-effectiveness of low back and neck pain treatment with and without chiropractic services are similar in the US and the EU. The results of the researchers’ analysis are as follows: Effectiveness: Chiropractic care is more effective than other modalities for treating low back and neck pain. Total cost of care per year: -For low back pain, chiropractic physician care increases total annual per patient spending by $75 compared to medical physician care. -For neck pain, chiropractic physician care reduces total annual per patient spending by $302 compared to medical physician care. Cost-effectiveness: When considering effectiveness and cost together, chiropractic physician care for low back and neck pain is highly cost-effective, represents a good value in comparison to medical physician care and to widely accepted cost-effectiveness thresholds. These findings, in combination with existing US studies published in peer-reviewed scientific journals, suggest that chiropractic care for the treatment of low back and neck pain is likely to achieve equal or better health outcomes at a cost that compares very favorable to most therapies that are routinely covered in US health benefits plans. As a result, the addition of chiropractic coverage for the treatment of low back and neck pain at prices typically payable in US employer-sponsored health benefit plans will likely increase value-for-dollar by improving clinical outcomes and either reducing total spending (neck pain) or increasing total spending (low back pain) by a smaller percentage than clinical outcomes improve. Accordingly, this report was commissioned by the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress (www.f4cp.com) to summarize the existing economic studies of chiropractic care published in peer-reviewed scientific literature, and to use the most robust of these studies to estimate the cost-effectiveness of providing chiropractic insurance coverage in the US. Gerard Clum, DC, spokesperson for the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress and president of Life Chiropractic College West, says, “While some studies reflect cost efficiencies and others clinical efficiencies, these findings strongly support both for chiropractic care of neck pain and low back pain.” About F4CP A not-for-profit organization, the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress (F4CP) embraces a singular mission to promote positive press for the profession in national, regional and local media. Through effective and ongoing initiatives, the Foundation’s goal is to raise awareness to the many benefits provided by doctors of chiropractic. The F4CP relies upon strategic marketing campaigns that span prominent spokespersons, monthly press releases, public service announcements, and advertisements in high-profile media outlets. To learn more about the Foundation, please visit us on the web at www.foundation4cp.com or call 866-901-f4cp.

The New York State Insurance Fund today announced a state-of-the-art online medical bill inquiry service with the expansion of its electronic Explanation of Benefits (EOB) for doctors treating workers’ compensation injuries covered by NYSIF. In making the announcement, NYSIF Chief Deputy Executive Director Francine James said the upgrades are part of NYSIF’s electronic medical billing and inquiry system available to all medical providers treating NYSIF claimants. “We are pleased with the upgrades we’ve made to our electronic EOB system and we anticipate that medical providers will be, too,” Ms. James said. “This system is a real time saver for doctors, their billing staffs and for our own personnel – and by including more information on screen NYSIF is introducing a state-of-the-art system for workers’ compensation medical bill inquiries.” The new EOB service gives providers a more detailed explanation of medical bill payments made by NYSIF, alerts them to bills that have not been received, or reasons why a bill hasn’t been paid. NYSIF introduced its online EOB for workers’ compensation medical providers in 2007, an Oracle based system built in-house by NYSIF system developers. The Fund followed soon thereafter with giving providers the option to submit medical bills electronically to NYSIF. The EOB upgrades are based on the most frequently asked questions received from doctors’ billing offices. The system has been a value added service, saving time and money by providing convenience for medical administrative staffs transacting business with NYSIF. According to NYSIF medical claims team, some of the more common reasons for non-payment of workers’ compensation medical bills submitted to NYSIF include pending claim status, claim disallowance, claim settlement, invalid jurisdiction, lack of proper medical records, and duplicate billing of paid procedures. All of this information is now accessible to medical providers and their staffs 24/7/365 days a year, spelled out clearly in one location for all medical bills submitted on every claim. NYSIF’s expanded electronic EOB offers an express means by which to cut wait time on billing errors, avoid payment delays and eliminate the time and resources NYSIF and doctors’ staffs devote to billing questions. Medical bill inquiries made online at nysif.com provide users with NYSIF’s claim number, the claimant’s name, date of injury, complete contact information for the NYSIF case manager and office assigned to the case, the NYSIF assigned bill number, bill date, date received and bill status for every claim on record. As an insurance carrier, NYSIF assigns its own claim number to workers’ compensation claims. The New York Workers’ Compensation Board assigns a different number to the claim. NYSIF lists both numbers in the summary to avoid potential confusion for administrative personnel not familiar with the state workers’ compensation system. The summary includes billing codes, total charges and amounts paid, along with a reason why only partial payment may have been made for certain billed procedures. A short narrative summarizes the check number, amount paid, date issued and mailing address on record. Users have the option to click on the check number to see a complete explanation of payments included in the check and to print the complete EOB. The service is free to any medical provider doing business with NYSIF. Medical providers may only access the EOB for the bills they submit. By leading to less time spent on billing questions, either on the phone or exchanging e-mail, NYSIF believes the new features will further increase productivity and efficiency for medical office personnel using the system and for NYSIF staff. NYSIF, a non-profit organization of the state of New York created as part of the Workers' Compensation Law of 1914, is New York’s largest workers’ compensation insurance carrier. By law, NYSIF is a competitive insurance carrier that sells workers' compensation and disability benefits insurance to any employer doing business in New York State. Approximately 185,000 employers hold NYSIF workers' compensation insurance policies, constituting about 41 percent of the market.

(Arlington, Va.) -- The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) has joined with other provider groups to support legislation, S. 1776, introduced in Congress on Oct. 13 by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (R-Mich.) that would permanently repeal the “flawed” formula that determines Medicare reimbursement rates. Current federal law mandates that Medicare payments to physicians be modified annually using the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula. The SGR formula ties payments to the national gross domestic product, and many in health care have expressed concerns that this system is neither accurate nor appropriate. Acknowledging problems associated with tying payments to the SGR, Congress for the past seven years has voted to overturn proposed fee cuts based on the formula. On Oct. 16, ACA joined other health care provider organizations in the Patients’ Access to Responsible Care Alliance (PARCA) to voice its strong support of ending the system that has for too long proposed unfair reimbursement rates. By joining with other providers, ACA underscores its belief that the current system is unacceptable for any health care professional. To read the PARCA letter to Sen. Stabenow, click here. “ACA is committed to supporting S. 1776, and any other legislation that addresses problems associated with the flawed SGR formula,” said ACA President Rick McMichael, DC. “Health care services to our nation’s Medicare beneficiaries should not be undervalued.” Look for updates on S. 1776, and ACA’s efforts to address the Medicare payment system, in upcoming ACA publications and on ACA’s Web site:

With health care reform activities accelerating in Congress, the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) has launched the Chiropractic Health Advocacy and Mobilization Project (CHAMP), a one-year campaign to raise funds in support of strategic lobbying activities intended to boost chiropractic’s profile on Capitol Hill.

The following is a summary of the key provisions relevant to chiropractic within the new Insurance Omnibus Law. Section 3, 19 & 32 Prohibits an insurer or HMO from implementing an adverse reimbursement change to a contract with a health care provider unless insurer or HMO gives health care professional 90 days written notice of the change and allows health care professional 30 days to terminate his/her contract with insurer or HMO. Effective date is January 1, 2010. Section 4 & 17 Insurers offering comprehensive policies establish grievance procedures and provide access to care consistent with insurance law. The effective date is January 1, 2011. Section 6 Requires insurers and HMOs to pay claims submitted electronically within 30 days and expands the provision of the PROMPT PAYMENT LAW to self-insured municipal cooperative health plans. This is effective January 1, 2010. Section 7 Prohibits insurers and HMOs from denying a claim on the basis that they are coordinating benefits – unless insurer or HMO has reasonable basis to believe enrollee has other insurance which is primary. Effective January 1, 2010. Section 8 If prompt payment violation is determined, an insurer or HMO shall not be subject to penalty if insurer or HMO has processed at least 98% of claims submitted within the calendar year. In the past, the insurer would pay claims to avoid penalties, but then implemented retrospective audits. This is effective January 1, 2010. Section 9 Health care claims must be submitted by health care professional within 120 days after date of service. Allows health care professionals to request reconsideration of a claim that is denied as untimely. If health care professional demonstrates untimely claim was a result of an unusual occurrence and health care professional has pattern of timely claim submission. HMO/insurer may reduce untimely claim by 25%. Effective April 1, 2010. Section 10 This portion contains most of the NYSCA drafted language on retrospective audits for the benefit of all title VIII health care professionals. Limits of look back period of time payers can go when making routine retrospective audits to 24 months. In addition, before payer can commence a recovery effort, payers must give providers written notice at least 30 days in advance of any recovery effort providing the practitioner with vital information concerning the claim and a reasonably specific explanation of any proposed adjustment as well as an opportunity to challenge the overpayment recovery effort. No time limit exists in situations where the payer holds a reasonable belief of fraud, intentional misconduct or abuse of billing. Effective January 1, 2010. Section 12, 13, 14 & 31 Inhibits insurers and HMOs from treating a hospital that participates within a network as a nonparticipating provider solely because the health care provider admitting or rendering services to the insured/enrollee is a nonparticipating provider. These sections also prohibit insurers and HMOs from treating a health care provider that participates within a network as a nonparticipating provider solely because services are rendered in a nonparticipating hospital. This is an important change, particularly for chiropractors and/or hospital based chiropractic practices. Effective date is January 1, 2010. Section 20 & 33 These provisions allow a newly licensed professional and providers relocating to NY to join the group practice of credentialed par providers participating in a HMO/MCO, a nonprofit indemnity or medical service plan to be provisionally credentialed by the health care plan until such time as the plan makes its final determination regarding the provider’s application. Effective date is October 1, 2009. Section 27 & 40 This requires an external appeal agent to notify a provider when appropriate of an external appeal determination. Effective date is January 1, 2010

Arlington, Va. -- The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) has retained Gephardt Government Affairs, headed by former U.S. House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt, to reinforce its efforts to ensure that any national health care reform legislation passed by Congress includes the services of doctors of chiropractic on par with other physician services in respect to access, reimbursement and scope of practice.

The debate concerning National Healthcare Reform is set to resume in Washington D.C. Your voice is needed to make your Senators and Congressmen know that chiropractic care is an integral part in any Healthcare Reform Legislation. Click on the link below. URGENT! CALL TO ACTION: FEDERAL HEALTHCARE REFORM

(Arlington)-- A new pilot program shows that conservative heath care, including chiropractic, may reduce overall health care costs in patients with musculoskeletal disorders, such as back and neck pain. The pilot, conducted by Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield to measure quality of patient care for its members in Iowa and South Dakota, also shows promising outcomes for the patients choosing chiropractic and other conservative care. “The cost-effectiveness and safety of chiropractic has been documented in several studies. ACA is pleased that insurance companies are starting to recognize the value that doctors of chiropractic and other conservative providers can offer to their members,” said ACA President Glenn Manceaux, DC. “Especially during the health care reform debate, it’s important that chiropractic and other conservative care methods are taken into serious consideration as a cost-effective alternative to the utilization of expensive surgery and hospital-based care,” he added. Wellmark conducted the Physical Medicine Pilot on Quality in 2008 for Iowa and South Dakota physical medicine providers. A total of 238 chiropractors, physical therapists and occupational therapists provided care to 5,500 members with musculoskeletal disorders. According to Wellmark, data from participating clinicians show that 89 percent of the patients treated in the pilot reported a greater than 30-percent improvement in 30 days. The pilot compared data for Wellmark members who received care from doctors of chiropractic or physical therapists with a member population with similar demographics who did not receive such services. The comparison showed that those who received chiropractic care or physical therapy were less likely to have surgery and experienced lower total health care costs, according to Wellmark. Chiropractic is widely recognized as one of the safest non-invasive therapies available for the treatment of back pain, neck pain, headaches and other neuromusculoskeletal complaints. A significant amount of evidence shows that chiropractic care for certain conditions can be more effective and less costly than traditional medical care. Recent research includes: • A study published in the October 2005 issue of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT) found that chiropractic and medical care have comparable costs for treating chronic low-back pain, with chiropractic care producing significantly better outcomes. • A March 2004 study in JMPT found that chiropractic care is more effective than medical care at treating chronic low-back pain in patients’ first year of symptoms. • A study published in a 2003 edition of the medical journal Spine found that manual manipulation provides better short-term relief of chronic spinal pain than do a variety of medications.

The NYSCA Officers, Directors and Delegates are pleased to announce that the Association’s hard work has been rewarded. Governor David Paterson has signed into law as Chapter 237 of the laws of 2009, Omnibus legislation (A8402a) containing NYSCA’s retrospective audit provisions.

The NYSCA is pleased to share with you the news that the Association’s hard work has been rewarded. Bill A8402 has been passed both the Assembly and the Senate. It now awaits Governor David Paterson’s signature for final approval. Included in this omnibus piece of legislation was the language of NYSCA’s retrospective audit bill.

ABSTRACT Background: Red yeast rice is an herbal supplement that decreases low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol level. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness and tolerability of red yeast rice and therapeutic lifestyle change to treat dyslipidemia in patients who cannot tolerate statin therapy. Design: Randomized, controlled trial. Setting: Community-based cardiology practice. Patients: 62 patients with dyslipidemia and history of discontinuation of statin therapy due to myalgias. Intervention: Patients were assigned by random allocation software to receive red yeast rice, 1800 mg (31 patients), or placebo (31 patients) twice daily for 24 weeks. All patients were concomitantly enrolled in a 12-week therapeutic lifestyle change program. Measurements: Primary outcome was LDL cholesterol level, measured at baseline, week 12, and week 24. Secondary outcomes included total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglyceride, liver enzyme, and creatinine phosphokinase (CPK) levels; weight; and Brief Pain Inventory score. Results: In the red yeast rice group, LDL cholesterol decreased by 1.11 mmol/L (43 mg/dL) from baseline at week 12 and by 0.90 mmol/L (35 mg/dL) at week 24. In the placebo group, LDL cholesterol decreased by 0.28 mmol/L (11 mg/dL) at week 12 and by 0.39 mmol/L (15 mg/dL) at week 24. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level was significantly lower in the red yeast rice group than in the placebo group at both weeks 12 (P < 0.001) and 24 (P = 0.011). Significant treatment effects were also observed for total cholesterol level at weeks 12 (P < 0.001) and 24 (P = 0.016). Levels of HDL cholesterol, triglyceride, liver enzyme, or CPK; weight loss; and pain severity scores did not significantly differ between groups at either week 12 or week 24. Limitation: The study was small, was single-site, was of short duration, and focused on laboratory measures. Conclusion: Red yeast rice and therapeutic lifestyle change decrease LDL cholesterol level without increasing CPK or pain levels and may be a treatment option for dyslipidemic patients who cannot tolerate statin therapy. Annals of Internal Medicine 16 June 2009 Volume 150 Issue 12 Pages 830-839

Abstract Background: Reduced intake of micronutrients during pregnancy exposes women to nutritional deficiencies and may affect fetal growth. We conducted a systematic review to examine the efficacy of prenatal supplementation with multimicronutrients on pregnancy outcomes. Methods: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library for relevant articles published in English up to December 2008. We also searched the bibliographies of selected articles as well as clinical trial registries. The primary outcome was low birth weight; secondary outcomes were preterm birth, small-for-gestational-age infants, birth weight and gestational age. Results: We observed a significant reduction in the risk of low birth weight among infants born to women who received multimicronutrients during pregnancy compared with placebo (relative risk [RR] 0.81, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.73–0.91) or iron–folic acid supplementation (RR 0.83, 95% CI 0.74–0.93). Birth weight was significantly higher among infants whose mothers were in the multimicronutrient group than among those whose mothers received iron–folic acid supplementation (weighted mean difference 54 g, 95% CI 36 g–72 g). There was no significant differences in the risk of preterm birth or small-for-gestational-age infants between the 3 study groups. Interpretation: Prenatal multimicronutrient supplementation was associated with a significantly reduced risk of low birth weight and with improved birth weight when compared with iron–folic acid supplementation. There was no significant effect of multimicronutrient supplementation on the risk of preterm birth or small-for-gestational-age infants. CMAJ • June 9, 2009; 180 (12). doi:10.1503/cmaj.081777.

New York State Education Law, section 6551(1) defines the practice of chiropractic as:

The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) obtained on June 5 a draft bill designed by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). This opening salvo is the first of many pieces of health care reform legislation that will be debated in the coming months within the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. The ACA Board of Governors discussed the draft June 6 during a previously scheduled meeting. The ACA government relations department is carefully reviewing the bill. According to ACA’s government relations staff, the bill, titled the “American Health Choices Act,” would direct individuals and businesses to obtain health care insurance. The draft contains language creating a federally-sponsored “public plan” that would compete with private insurers. The public plan aspect of the legislation is troublesome to Republicans, many of which have declared that a public plan would wipe out current private insurance; however, the public plan option recently gained approval by the Obama administration. Other major provisions in the draft bill include: -----Providers and hospitals that serve patients under the new public plan would be paid 10 percent above current Medicare rates. -----Premiums will cover most of the costs associated with the public plan. -----New insurance exchanges called “Gateways” would be created to enable individuals to shop for insurance, similar to how consumers shop for air fares on Internet travel sites. -----Federal subsidies for mid- to low-income families to purchase insurance. The bill does not include specific language regarding physician status or services that would be available under the public plan. Instead, a new “Medical Advisory Council” would decide a schedule of services considered “essential health care benefits.” Each year, the council would issue new recommendations, which would take effect automatically unless rejected by Congress. The HELP Committee is scheduled to address the bill the week of June 15. The other Senate committee of jurisdiction, Finance, is looking to address health care reform sometime later in June. The House of Representatives is planning to address health care reform throughout the summer and pass a bill before the August recess. ACA urges all doctors of chiropractic to continue to contact their legislators in Washington and demand that chiropractic interests are protected in any health care reform plan developed on Capitol Hill. Doctors of chiropractic and state associations are also strongly encouraged to enlist their patients and other chiropractic supporters in the ChiroVoice advocacy network. ACA will continue to issue updates on pertinent reform activities as they become available. Stay informed throughout the national health care reform debate via:

According to a newly released patient survey by a leading consumer group, chiropractic is the top rated treatment for back pain. Of the 14,000 survey respondents who suffered from back pain in the past year, 58 percent rated chiropractic/spinal manipulation as helping a lot. When asked how satisfied they were with practitioners, 59 percent of respondents said they were “highly satisfied” with the back pain treatment received from their doctors of chiropractic whereas only 34 percent said the same about their primary care physicians. Most survey respondents had, on average, tried five or six different treatments for their back pain. Click on the link below to watch a report from CBS News:

The New York State Chiropractic Association asks members to support the ACA chiropractic advocacy network, ChiroVoice.org (ChiroVoice). Through this chiropractic advocacy network, patients and chiropractic supporters can stay informed about important health care issues and contact their legislators in Washington. Chiropractic supporters will be able to educate policymakers about the value of chiropractic and work to positively impact any legislative efforts to reform the current national health care system. ChiroVoice will also enable the NYSCA to mobilize patient support at the state level for legislative action when necessary. Ask your patients to sign up now! (Please be sure to adhere to all HIPAA regulations if signing patients up in your office.) The time is now for ChiroVoice! The opportunity to challenge some of the long standing issues beleaguering our profession. Prevention... Wellness... Fee Parity....Anti Discrimination Statutes, Full Scope Medicare, etc. These are just a few of our issues to be debated in DC. Historically, when given the chance to compete on a level playing field our profession shines. Along the same lines, historically the way we get there is through grass roots activities. The ACA has iniated ChiroVoice. Yet, many docs have not asked patients and staff to sign up. Please take time today to get your patients and staff involved. The Senate is marking up legislation this week and the House in a few weeks. President Obama wants a bill on his desk by the fall if not sooner. We can shape our future. It is said "Inaction has as significant of an impact as action," please don't let inaction cause us to fail. It's up to all of us to get involved, be involved, stay involved and be triumphant...we all benefit! Thanks for your help! Louis Lupinacci, DC, FICC NYSCA Vice President H. William Wolfson, DC, FICC NYS Downstate Delegate