It's all over the news: Americans are divided over health care reform. However, doctors of chiropractic are planning a historic display of unity on Capitol Hill to ensure that the voice of the chiropractic profession is heard by lawmakers.
"ACA was delighted to work with our Chiropractic Summit partners to set the direction of NCLC 2012," said ACA President Dr. Keith Overland. "Working together on developing our priorities and our message ahead of the event will ensure that we speak to lawmakers in a clear, unified voice."
For 37 years, ACA members have gathered in Washington, D.C., annually to meet with members of Congress and discuss the issues affecting doctors of chiropractic and their patients. In addition to lobbying, NCLC offers information about federal initiatives.
The theme of this year's conference, "The Power of Cultural Authority – Staying Essential in Health Care Reform," will explore the challenges facing the chiropractic profession as implementation of the health care reform law continues on national and state levels. Enhancing the cultural authority of doctors of chiropractic by getting individual DCs placed on key committees will help set the stage for the full inclusion of the profession as reform law provisions are put into place around the country.
"In an election year, so many issues are competing for attention in Washington," said Dr. Lewis Bazakos, chairman of the Chiropractic Summit. "To impact Congress, we need a particularly strong display of force. The Chiropractic Summit urges every DC [who] can to come to Washington for NCLC and add their voice to our cause."
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) will deliver the keynote address at NCLC. Among his many initiatives are the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution and the Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act.
Sen. Hatch is the ranking Republican on the Senate Committee on Finance, the committee responsible for overseeing 60 percent of the federal budget including Medicare. He is also a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which also oversees a large portion of the nation's health care delivery system, putting Sen. Hatch on the front lines of legislative battles over health reform.
A longtime advocate of the services delivered by doctors of chiropractic and a member of a "chiropractic family," Sen. Hatch has championed complementary and alternative therapies that are holistic, natural and fiscally sound during his more than 35 years in the U.S. Senate.
The Impact of Action
Hard work by the ACA and its allies resulted in three pro-chiropractic provisions in the health care reform law known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). However, questions about the essential-benefits package, filling gaps in the primary care work force and the establishment of health insurance exchanges on the state level are still in the hands of legislators. Chiropractic organizations must band together and remain in the fight to ensure the profession is not overlooked when important decisions about covered benefits are made.
The essential-benefits package is a critical issue. Inclusion of the services provided by doctors of chiropractic as essential benefits would remove many artificial barriers in the way of patient access to DCs, and would also help ensure that chiropractic physicians receive fair reimbursement.
Additionally, as the primary care work-force shortage is addressed, "Congress needs to hear that DCs can help fill the gap," said John Falardeau, ACA's vice president of government relations. "Congress needs to know that chiropractic has always been focused on providing essential services, and they need to hear it directly from the profession."
State-Level Initiatives
The implementation phase of health care reform moves work to the state level. By 2014, states must create "American Health Benefit Exchanges" that will provide eligible individuals and small businesses with access to insurers' plans in a comparable way. Falardeau explained that exchanges would function like travel sites such as Orbitz.com, with people going online to compare and purchase insurance.
Additionally, "DCs must be included on provider panels in their states to ensure fee parity," said Falardeau. "Talking about this issue with leaders in Washington can provide another foot in the door and increase the cultural authority of DCs across the country."
More Than Just Health Reform
At this year's NCLC, doctors of chiropractic and lawmakers will talk about pressing legislative issues, such as expanding access to chiropractic for members of the military and military veterans. With the ACA's support, three key bills were introduced in Congress last year:
- H.R. 329, which would require the Veterans Administration to have a DC on staff at all major VA medical facilities by 2014;
- S. 1147, a Senate companion bill to H.R. 329; and
- H.R. 409, which would extend chiropractic to U.S. military retirees, dependents and survivors as part of TRICARE.
In addition, the ACA and the Association of Chiropractic Colleges are working to advance H.R. 6032, a bill that would include DCs in the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps. The corps is a team of health professionals that promotes public health and provides disease-prevention programs and health care services across the country.
Also on the radar is H.R. 531, legislation that would provide opportunities for DCs to work in exchange for student-loan relief while ensuring that medically underserved communities across America have access to a wide array of health care services and an expanded range of provider types.
The chiropractic profession has real solutions for America's broken health care system. Now, more than ever, Congress must hear a clear message from the doctors of chiropractic in their districts and states. As Dr. Overland put it, "Remember, inaction is as consequential as action."
Article submitted by the ACA. For additional information on the 2012 National Chiropractic Legislative Conference, visit www.acatoday.org and enter the search term "NCLC."