The ACA reports that four of the profession's smaller state associations are among the top six financial contributors to the National Chiropractic Legal Action Fund (NCLAF).
Those associations and their contributions are:
| • South Dakota Chiropractic Association* | $60,250 |
| • Kansas Chiropractic Association* | $42,500 |
| • North Dakota Chiropractic Association | $40,005 |
| • Nebraska Chiropractic Association | $40,001 |
| * including regional associations |
For their size, these contributions are remarkable. The South Dakota Chiropractic Association, for example, has only 241 resident licensees in the state (according to the website of the South Dakota Board of Chiropractic Examiners).
The NCLAF was established primarily to fund the ACA's legal battles with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (formerly called HCFA), and Trigon Blue Cross/Blue Shield.
The chiropractic profession has enjoyed some success with these lawsuits, notably when the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently issued a policy directive that nonphysician physical therapists cannot provide manual manipulation of the spine to correct a subluxation under the Medicare+Choice program. However, the more critical and expensive phases of the suits are ahead.
"Our opponents are hoping that we'll simply run out of money," explained ACA President Daryl Wills,DC. "It's time for those organizations and individuals that have been more reluctant to contribute to feel a sense of urgency, so that we can see these battles through to a victorious conclusion."
"Our chiropractic pioneers had the vision to dedicate their lives to serving humanity regardless of the consequences, even if it meant serving time in jail," observed Monte Greenawalt,DC, the NCLA national spokesman and founder of Foot Levelers, Inc. (Foot Levelers has contributed $25,000 to the fund.) "These legal battles are this generation's challenge. How we respond will affect our future and the future of chiropractic for decades to come," he asserted.
