News in Brief

Wisconsin Exam Meets Its Match

As of June 30, 2013, when Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed the 2013-2015 budget, the state's controversial chiropractic licensing exam is no more, eliminated as a requirement for prospective DCs wishing to practice in Wisconsin. Moving forward, applicants need only complete the requisite educational requirements and successfully pass Parts I-IV of the NBCE exam in order to achieve licensure.

As discussed in a previous article in DC, Motion #91 not only eliminates the exam, but establishes minimum passage requirements for Parts III-IV: 438 or higher for Part III and 475 or higher for Part IV. In addition, the motion includes "a technical fix to allow for a limited grandfathering of applicants who sat for but failed to pass the state exam, but who otherwise obtained a passing score on the NBCE exam and state jurisprudence exam," according to the Wisconsin Chiropractic Association (WCA).

Readers will recall that the WCA, which staunchly supported the state exam for more than a decade, did an effective about-face several months ago, joining the state's other chiropractic association, the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin, in supporting Motion #91 to eliminate the exam.

For background, read our recent series of four articles discussing the Wisconsin exam controversy:

• "Examining the Wisconsin State Exam: State Board Under Increasing Fire for Unique Testing Requirement" (June 1, 2013)
• "History Repeating Itself in Wisconsin?" (June 1, 2013)
• "Say Goodbye to the Wisconsin State Exam?" (June 15, 2013)
• "Politics vs. Doing the Right Thing" (June 15, 2013)

F4CP Report on Accountable Care Organizations Released

The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress released "Accountable Care Organizations Optimize Outcomes, Cost Savings and Patient Satisfaction With Chiropractic Care" in late June. According to the foundation, the report highlights "the role and ability of doctors of chiropractic to generate better patient outcomes, higher satisfaction scores and lower care costs for advanced delivery models" such as accountable care organizations (ACOs) and patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs). Key conclusions from the report, as shared by the foundation, include the following (download the full report here):

• "Chiropractic care provides treatment for the leading causes of disability and burden of disease, low back and neck pain, which rank respectively as the number one and number four cause of disability worldwide, according to the World Health Organization.
• "Injured workers whose initial healthcare provider was a surgeon underwent surgery 42.7 percent of the time, versus 1.5 percent when the provider was a D.C., reported an article in Spine.
• "The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), which explored the economics of spinal pain, reported the cost of spinal pain from 1997 to 2005 increased by 65 percent – in eight years, the costs increased by two-thirds. This problem is not shrinking – it is expanding year after year.
• "In the spectrum of provider-assisted care for low back pain, chiropractic care is among the least invasive, least dangerous and least expensive approaches to be considered.
• "In ACO and PCMH environments, D.C.s provide potential for greater clinical efficiency, patient satisfaction and cost savings than is currently available.
• "The inclusion of chiropractic services in advanced delivery models is being facilitated by credentialing processes in development by URAC and the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)."

Dee Cee Labs Makes Major Donation to the Foundation

Supplement manufacturer Dee Cee Labs recently pledged $100,000 to the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress. The donation will be fulfilled over the next five years.

"We have been following the F4CP positive press campaign for several years, and are very impressed with its progress," said Dee Cee Labs President, Harry Hester, DC. "We probably should have been supporting this effort a long time ago."

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