Chiropractor Candidate Defeats MD
The political action committee of the California Chiropractic Association (CCA), the most effective chiropractic association in the United States, spent $50,000 on a significant Republican primary race for an Assembly seat in Orange County.
Chiropractic Candidates Win
The leadership behind the CCA also involved itself in several other primary election races. In five races out of six, the CCA scored victories and earned friends in Sacramento for years to come. Finally, the log-jam between the Assembly Republicans and the CCA has been broken. Years ago the CCA developed a strong alliance with Willy Brown, the powerful speaker of the Assembly, as well as an important Democratic leader in California. For years, it has been the Democrats carrying the water for chiropractic legislation on vital issues concerning exclusion of chiropractic in health maintenance organizations, equality of insurance benefits for chiropractors, and scope of practice issues.
Earlier this year, a special election was held for a state Senate seat in a Republican stronghold and the CCA came in early to support Assemblyman Frank Hill in a very expensive and tough race. The state Senate Republicans were very grateful for CCA's help which promises to show greater bipartisan support of chiropractic issues in the state legislature.
Insurance Commissioner
In the Democratic primary, the CCA took major steps to support candidate, Bill Press for insurance commissioner. The insurance commissioner post is a newly designated, publicly elected office. Unfortunately, five out of the six major candidates running for insurance commissioner were pro-consumer candidates. Naturally, the only non-consumer candidate, wealthy State Senator John Garamandi, narrowly won the election. The pro-consumer candidates collected 65 percent of the vote, but lost to Senator Garamandi. The important fact is, the chiropractic community in California, according to Bill Press, raised well over a $100,000 for his election in about 60 days. Senator Garamandi was deeply impressed with the commitment of the chiropractic community and asked to be invited to the state convention just seven days following the election, where he made his first major post-election speech. Senator Garamandi, the strongly favored candidate to be elected this fall as insurance commissioner met privately with the chiropractic leadership. He offered to include chiropractors on a health care advisory board and he offered chiropractic leadership access on issues important to health care providers. Senator Garamandi, who may have greater ambitions for higher office, clearly understands and respects the chiropractic potential and is starting off on the right foot toward a closer relationship with chiropractic.
Attorney General Race
Finally, in the hard-fought election for attorney general, pro-chiropractic candidate, Arlo Smith, district attorney of San Francisco, narrowly defeated Los Angeles District Attorney Ira Reiner.
In the pages of the March 29, 1990 issue of Dynamic Chiropractic, it was published that Arlo Smith is conducting an investigation against the notorious and outrageous antichiropractic practices of AAA (Northern California). Arlo Smith's office has shown great integrity in challenging the management of Northern California AAA and its deceptive and fraudulent practice of denying med-pay benefits to chiropractic patients. Arlo Smith has a significant chance for becoming attorney general of California and chiropractic may look forward to having a friend in the office of the attorney general who will defend consumers' rights to receive chiropractic benefits.
Shawn Steel, Esq.
Los Angeles, California
Shawn Steel created a new field of law by defending chiropractors and acupuncturists, and representing their patients in personal-injury matters. He has law offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Orange County, Calif.; has taught ethics and jurisprudence classes at Cleveland Chiropractic College since 1991; and is a prolific lecturer and writer with more than 40 articles and book chapters to his credit.