November 21, 2006

Table of Contents:

AMA's Accelerated Activities
AAOM's Expo 2007 Call for Speakers
AAOM Welcomes New Members!
Giovanni Maciocia: Study with a Master
Integrator Blog News & Reports
AIMS's Invitation to a Town Hall Dinner Meeting

Greetings OM Members and Colleagues:

The focus of this issue of the Qi-Unity Report will expand on the accelerated activities of the AMA as it impacts our profession. This is a complex issue.

AMA ACTIVITY AGAINST NON-MD PROVIDERS ACCELERATES

by Rebekah Christensen, AAOM ED

Since the AAOM’s last on Resolution 814 and HR-5688 on September 5, 2006, the AMA’s “limited license practitioners” activities across the US have greatly accelerated. The AMA’s activities associated with “limited license practitioners” are advancing at a rapid pace and significantly threaten not only our profession, but other CAM providers, as well as all non-MD allopathic providers. This is a complex issue. We suggest first-time readers refer to the AAOM’s September 5, 2006 and July 21, 2006 E-Blasts for background information, as these documents are the foundation for the reporting of new activities that follow in this update.

Coalition Updates: To avoid redundancy, please reference AAOM’s July 21, and September 5, 2006 updates for background information on the Coalition for Patient’s Rights.

The AMA Interim Meeting of its House of Delegates (HOD) was held November 11-14, 2006 in Las Vegas, NV. Prior to the meeting the AMA posted online Report 21, which details the AMA’s 2007 Strategic Plan. Note the reference on page 4 of the plan, stating: "Scope of Practice, stating: “Our AMA will take a lead role in coordinating medicine’s response to proposed scope expansions that are not warranted by non-physicians’ education, training or experience. The Scope of Practice Partnership (SOPP) provides a foundation for these activities.

As we gain experience and traction with the SOPP, we anticipate formation of rapid response coalitions that cross specialty groups. We will consider creation of state-level joint review committees, supported in part by a compendium comparing education, licensure, etc. for different types of practitioners. We will also seek data to map the geographic distribution of various practitioner types in order to inform discussion of access to care."

The American Nursing Association (ANA), the National Council for State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) and The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) were in attendance at the AMA meeting as observers.

AMA Meeting Highlights: As reported to AAOM by The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA): “The opening ceremonies, following awards and acknowledgements of members who have accomplished outstanding work, Dr. William G. Plested III, President of the AMA provided his speech which called for AMA to "Take Back the Profession". He urged physicians to make a renewed commitment to the profession and place a sharper focus on the issues affecting it.

He was followed by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Michael O. Leavitt who spoke about the pay-for-performance initiative as well as the pending 5 percent cut in 2007 Medicare physician payments. Sec. Leavitt stated that if physicians don't develop quality measures then "MBAs" will.

The presentations prompted an Emergency Resolution introduced by the Georgia Delegation titled "Taking Back the Profession of Medicine" which resolves to a) accept and affirm Dr. Plested's pledge - to return the rightful prerogatives of the profession to the physicians of American and to b) write a letter to the Secretary requesting that the government cease and desist activities related to pay for performance.

The President of the AMA received a standing ovation and the meeting took the tone of AMA will take back Medicine.

The AMA’s advancement of their limited licensure activities first introduced under Resolution 814 and HR-5688 were expanded upon through the introduction of Resolution 902 and 904:

Resolution 902 (introduced by the American Society of Anesthesiologists – referred to Committee L) under the title: Need for Active Medical Board Oversight of Medical Scope-of-Practice Activities by Med Level Practitioners; and
Resolution 904 entitled Diagnosis of Disease and Diagnostic Interpretation of Tests Constitutes Practice of Medicine to be Performed by or Under the Supervision of Licensed Physicians (Introduced by the College of American Pathologists and American Society of Anesthesiologists and Referred to Committee L.)
- AANA Public Testimony to AMA: The AANA has shared their comments, presented at Hearing L, with the members of the CPR. These were drafted by their president, Terry C. Wicks, CRNA, MHS at Hearing L. The AANA found the Hearing L audience somewhat hostile to anyone that was not an MD. A short summary of the AANA’s positions include:
- The AANA urges American Medical Association (AMA) Reference Committee “L” to recommend withdrawal of Resolution 902 and 904. If the resolutions are not withdrawn, we request that Reference Committee “L” recommend that the AMA’s House of Delegates vote against the resolutions.
- Both Resolution 902 and Resolution 904 fail to cite any evidence demonstrating that the alleged problems cited in the resolutions actually exist and, if so, to what extent; in spite of our past requests for evidence supporting claims of professional misconduct, no such evidence has been provided. The AMA’s House of Delegates should not adopt policies based on rumor or unsubstantiated or anecdotal evidence.

As a result of public testimony, the AMA HOD adopted formal positions on 902 and 904:

AMA HOD Position - 902: The Reference Committee heard extensive testimony on Resolution 902. The vast majority of this testimony was in general support of the spirit of the Resolution. However, there was confusion. The Reference Committee concurs with testimony that the intent of Resolution 902 is neither to create a "superboard" that would regulate the practice of all health professions, nor to have state Boards of Medicine regulate the practice of other professionals. The Reference Committee also agrees with testimony that state Boards of Medicine have the full authority to regulate those who practice medicine, even in cases where the individual whose acts constitute the practice of medicine is licensed under the authority of another state health professions board. The Reference Committee believes that it is critical for state Boards of Medicine to define and defend the practice of medicine in order to ensure that patients receive the highest quality of care. In furtherance of this priority, and due to the urgency of this issue and impending attempts at scope of practice expansions expected in the 2007 legislative session.

AMA HOD Position - 904: The HOD adopted the Committee L report as amended which states:

Resolved, That is shall be the policy of our AMA that a PhD clinical lab scientist or other non-physician laboratory personnel work under the supervision of a physician under their applicable scopes of work to perform a study or studies that will be the basis of a diagnostic interpretation for a specific patient;

Resolved, That is shall be the policy of our AMA that the Medicare Physician fee schedule compensate only authorized persons for the diagnostic interpretation of a specific patient and should not provide payments directly to non-physician lab personnel working under the supervision of a physician to perform a laboratory study or studies;

Resolve, That our AMA pursue all appropriate legislative, regulatory and legal actions to counter expansions of the scope of work by PhD clinical lab scientists and other non-physician laboratory personnel to authorize the independent practice of medicine by an individual who has not completed the state’s requirements for licensure to engage in the practice of medicine. It was interesting that the Reference Committee added clinical lab scientists to this resolution to somewhat narrow the scope of this resolution.

AAOM Action Items:

As a result of our September 5, 2006 E-Blast, a task force was formed to guide the AAOM’s input to the CPR, entitled: OM-Coalition of Patients Rights Collaborative (OM-CPRC)
We are again extending information to join the OM-CPRC:
- Chair: Rebekah Christensen, AAOM ED;
- Co-Chair: TBD by OM-CPRC;
- National Associations: (Board Member - one representative each);
- State Associations: (Board Member – one representative each);
- Public Members: (one public member per state – designated by the Board of Directors of each state association);
  Tasks:
- Collaborative List Serve developed for OM-CPRC;
- Steering Committee identified for OM-CPRC;
- Goals formulated for OM-CPRC;
- AAOM to identify subject matter experts (SMEs) to OM-CPRC Goals and Objectives;
- Funding requirements determined for OM-CPRC;
- Development of formalized positions relating AMA activities; immediate action is needed. (Note: Members of the CPR are forming state groups to collectively address AMA activities occurring within their states. AAOM will attend its first meeting of a CA working group on November 29, 2006. We anticipate many state-affiliated working groups to form for task-force participation.)
- OM-CPRC Conference Call: December 14, 2006 Conference Call – 5:15PM PST
To Join the OM-CPR: You must be a board member of any national organization representing Oriental Medicine or any State Association representing Oriental Medicine. The qualifications for public members will be determined by the OM-CPRC at its first meeting.

Board Designees: Please complete and submit the following information using only this interactive form. (Name, Credentials, Position on Board, Street Address/City/State/Zip, Phone/Fax/Email, 100 word bio.)

We look forward to hearing from you and to working on this important matter in the days and months ahead.

Rebekah Christensen, AAOM ED

This Issue Sponsored By:

KPC is the U.S. office for Kaiser Pharmaceutical Co in Taiwan. KP is one of the most established, respected producers of concentrated Chinese herbs in all of China. Modern scientific processing methods and rigorous quality control set KPC Herbs apart from all other sources of Chinese herbs. KPC Herbs provides the following products to qualified Chinese herbalists, acupuncturists, and practitioners of Chinese Medicine: Granules and Powder, Tablets, and Capsules. Visit http://www.kpc.com.

AAOM Announces Speaker
Call for Papers Expo 2007
Location: Portland Oregon
Venue: The Hilton Executive Tower
Date: October 19 – 21, 2007 (Pre-Conf: 18th – Post-Conf: 22nd)

CALL FOR PAPERS DUE DATE: JANUARY 6, 2007

AAOM Exhibitors Brochure 2007
(Booths 50, 68-71, 76-78, 87 are sold.)

Expo 2006 Follow-up Report

AAOM WELCOMES NEW MEMBERS!

The lifeblood of any organization is its members. As a new feature of Qi Unity Report, we will announce the new members joining each month. In this first announcement we are pleased to highlight the members joining the AAOM since September 1, 2006. We are proud to say that we have grown in strength by 101 members! We thank you for your support and welcome you aboard!

For those of you that would like to learn more about the benefits of membership in the AAOM, we are pleased to provide categorical listings of our member benefits: Student, 1st Year, 2nd Year, and Professional, Joint, Allied Professional, Business, School, Association Membership, OM Advocates, Friends of Acupuncture, AAOM's Membership Application

Practitioners:
Fortini, Yunsil Kim, Chandler, AZ Speraw, Alaina, Scottsdale, AZ Wang, Betty, Gilbert, AZ Yahner, Marie, Phoenix, AZ Brooks, Cheryll, San Francisco, CA Chiu, Choy-Pik, Mountain View, CA Docimo, Erica, Hollywood, CA Fujii, Seiji, Ladera Ranch, CA Hung, Yenching, Sunnyvale, CA Delgado, Maria, Miami, FL Moreira, Gloria, Miami, FL Weinfeld, Sigal, Largo, FL Willcox, Tony, Deerfield Beach, FL Alamar, Scott, Chicago, IL Peek, Hope, Charlotte, NC Trembula, Todd, Charlotte, NC Brookman, Heather, Austin, TX Ueno, Tetsuhiro, Arlington, VA Shaw, Kevin, Snohomish, WA Abbott, Rebecca, Mequon, WI Bauer-Prigatano, Dagmar, Phoenix, AZ Romero, Leslie, Tucson, AZ Zitcer, Andre, Anthem, AZ Barrett, John, Los Angeles, CA Kong, Howard, Oakland, CA Ladine, Dyanne, East Palo Alto, CA Moss, Jennifer, San Francisco, CA Pasquale, Neka, Mill Valley, CA Reiss, L Natasha, La Jolla, CA Richardson, Larry, Los Angeles, CA Roemer Brown, Robin, W.Garden Grove, CA	Wilson, Carla, San Francisco, CA Hobbs, Valerie, Boulder, CO Denny, Scott, Davie, FL Birmingham, David, Owosso, MI Maloney, Lynn, Columbia, MO Sleeper, James A., Santa Fe, NM McSweeney, Farolyn, Henderson, NV Terlitzky, Stephen, New York, NY Lui, Shui, Cleveland Heights, OH Wellman, Susan, Mt. Vernon, WA Stevens, Karen, Delafield, WI Morris, Colleen, Austin, TX Chen, Y.M., Phoenix, AZ Donatello, Lance, Scottsdale, AZ Silapalikitporn, Tutsie, Phoenix, AZ Stout, Reginald, Tucson, AZ Komada, Joey, Torrence, CA Ye, Helen, San Francisco, CA Barnett, John, Winter Park, FL Clark, Ra'ufa, Beverly, MA Melvig, Marcie, Hancock, MI Johnson, Carole, New York, NY Rhodes, John, Phoenix, AZ Taylor, Sherri, Phoenix, AZ Minich, Susan, Burbank, CA Rosenberg, Cindy, Los Angeles, CA Zegar, Eileen, West Hollywood, CA Reasons, Merry, Denver, CO Staub, William, Waianae, HI Haerle, Joanna, Chicago, IL Galvin, Amy, Randolph, MA Conforti, Adrianne, Bellmore, NY
Students:
Adams, Sheh, Tucson, AZ Begay, Tina Rae, Glendale, AZ Bigler, Aaron, Phoenix, AZ De Souza, Elisabete, Paradise Valley, AZ Doroudian, Aleta, Tuscon, AZ Krueger-Sherin, Dawn, Phoenix, AZ Maurer, Mary, Cave Creek, AZ McElligott, Nathan, Scottsdale, AZ Powell, Chad, Chandler, AZ Reatherford, CT, Scottsdale, AZ Rebadow, Donna, Phoenix, AZ Taylor, Donna, Mesa, AZ DeStefano II, Joseph, La Jolla, CA Doherty, Heather, North Hollywood, CA Frank, Harris, Aptos, CA Gong, Alyssa, Santa Monica, CA Lesseps, David, San Francisco, CA Ozeki, Luriko, Playa Vista, CA Partridge, Kayla, Sylmar, CA Borman, Berenice, NorthPort, FL	Paskow, Patti, St. Petersburg, FL Bowles, David, Honolulu, HI Low, Wai Hoa, Honolulu, HI Bashir, Gloria, Hazel Crest, IL Czerwinski, Kristine, Chicago, IL Hinman, Barrie, Barrington, IL Jahnke, Jody, Chicago, IL Denny, Patrick, Minneapolis, MN Habeck, Jolene, Bloomington, MN McKenzie, Eileen, Minneapolis, MN Sowada, Kathleen, Becker, MN Benton, Nancy, Bloomfield, NY Chow, Stephanie, Jamesville, NY Xu, Hongyan, Canton, OH Dooley, Ericka, Portland, OR Jones, David, Austin, TX Stewart, Audrey, Austin, TX Stone, Becca, Houston, TX Boatman, Carolyn, Cedarburg, WI Fullin, Patricia, Kenosha, WI
General Business:
Honso USA, Inc., Phoenix, AZ Apex Energetics Inc, Irvine, CA Golden Sunshine USA, Inc, Brea, CA nuHerbs, Inc., Oakland, CA	Blue Poppy Enterprises, Boulder, CO Miridia Technology, Inc., Meridian, ID AcuTech International, Inc., North York, ON
School:
Academy of OM at Austin, TX
State Association:
NC Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, Davidson, NC

Giovanni Maciocia: Study with a Master

The Extraordinary Vessels & The Treatment of Male Disorders
more... (PDF)

Integrator Blog News & Reports

As an on-going monthly feature, the Qi-Unity Report continues to feature articles of interest from "The Integrator Blog", edited by John Weeks and sponsored by NCMIC, Triad Healthcare, Standard Process, Alternative Medicine Integration Group, and individuals who voluntarily contribute. The month includes: Challenge to NIH NCCAM; Big Business and Integrative Medicine; Portrait of a Multi-disciplinary National Policy Organization; Discussion of How 3rd-Party Payment Changes Practice; and Growth in ND/Massage Fields.

Integration, by nature, asks us to open our peripheral visions. We are served to look at the whole of the field. We need to develop new fascia, new connectivity. Opportunities crop up in new places. The Integrator Blog News and Reports is meant to provide you with information, insights and tools to enhance integrated care in the environment you serve.

- John Weeks, publisher-editor

October 13, 2006

Is NIH NCCAM Sailing into a Perfect Storm? (article)
The NIH National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), forced on the NIH by the US Congress in 1998, has always been viewed as a kind of bastard step-child by the old-line NIH establishment. Now a Congressionally-mandated re-shaping of NIH, federal budget pressures, a series of negative results and antagonistic editorials in Science, and the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, one may see, in the distance the signs of a perfect storm.

Insurance Leaders on 3rd Party Payment, the CPT, and CAM-IM Maturation (article)
What does taking 3rd party payment change in a clinical practice? What role does such payment play in the development of a healthcare profession? Agostino Villani, DC, a long-time chiropractic leader and CEO of Integrator sponsor Triad Healthcare, provided a wonderfully frank assessment in an earlier Integrator article. Villani focused on some of the corruptive pressures. This article looks at views of two insurance-savvy leaders of the naturopathic medical profession, Kevin Wilson, ND, and Bruce Milliman, ND, who read Villani's comments and reflected on their own views. These are their remarks, and Villani's responses. This article is part of a sponsored series on the Future of Yoga Therapy from the International Association of Yoga Therapists.

Pelletier-Weil Program Has Major Employers Exploring Integrative Medicine Approaches (article)
Kenneth R. Pelletier, PhD, MD(hc) and his Corporate Health Improvement Program (CHIP), which involves over a dozen of the nation's largest employers, is focusing its research and clinical programs on prevention and disease management "using an integrative medicine approach." Outcomes of the multi-year project will focus on both clinical and cost-effectiveness. CHIP's development since 1984, and the list of areas of potential exploration, are lessons in understanding the large employer as an integrated care partner.

Integrated Healthcare Policy Consortium (IHPC): Leadership in National Action (article)
Since 1997, individuals currently leading the multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder Integrated Healthcare Policy Consortium (IHPC) have taken the lead in a series of national policy actions regarding integrated healthcare. Among these are pushing for the creation of NIH NCCAM, convening national policy and national education dialogues to advance integrated health care, and incubating a new CAM educator consortium. According to board chair, Sheila Quinn, IHPC is poised to play a growing role in promoting policy that can help transform US health care.

CAM Disciplines Data: Licensed NDs Double in 5 Years; Massage Use Doubles in 10 Years (article)
An academic study by some medical geographers shows the significant growth, nationally, of natural health care's smallest licensed profession - naturopathic medicine, plus state by state activity. And the American Massage Therapy Association takes advantage of its 10th year of consumer surveys to see how much consumer use of, and perspective about, massage has changed. A special AMTA focus on Generations X & Y ...

The Integrator is made possible through the generosity of sponsorships from NCMIC, Triad Healthcare, Standard Process, and Alternative Medicine Integration Group.

AIMS Invitation to a Town Hall Dinner Meeting

Socialize with other LAc's, Discuss current state of the profession, Exchange of information and ideas, Open forum – Questions and Answers

Town Hall Dinner Meeting Invitation (PDF)

In closing…

"In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit."

Rebekah Christensen,
Executive Director