Section 2706 of Affordable Care Act Under Attack
H.R. 2817, the "Protect Patient Access to Quality Health Professionals Act of 2013," was introduced on July 24, 2013 in the House of Representatives. Sponsored by Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) and referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce as of press time, the legislation would "amend title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act to remove the non-discrimination requirements relating to health care providers."
Section 2706 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), "Non-Discrimination in Health Care," mandates, among other stipulations: "A group health plan and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage shall not discriminate with respect to participation under the plan or coverage against any health care provider who is acting within the scope of that provider's license or certification under applicable State law." The section also ensures that doctors of chiropractic and other providers can provide any essential benefit included within their scope of practice.
Last year, the American Medical Association appeared to plant the seeds for H.R. 2817 when its House of Delegates decided to initiate a lobbying effort against Section 2706. The decision was not altogether unexpected, considering the AMA's turf-war history with the chiropractic profession in particular, not to mention its 2006 endorsement of the Scope-of-Practice Partnership, a conglomeration of state medical associations and specialty groups established to "marshal the allopathic medical community's resources against the growing threat of expanding scope of practice by allied health professionals."
Follow H.R. 2817 online at http://thomas.loc.gov and look for updates in DC as details emerge.
APHA Annual Meeting in Boston This November
The American Public Health Association will hold its 141st annual meeting and exposition in Boston from Nov. 2-6, 2013, and as usual the Chiropractic Health Care section of the APHA will feature a unique program of speakers and sessions. Major topic areas to be covered at the CHC business meeting on Nov. 4 include "Prevention and Public Health in Clinical Practice," "Population-Based Interdisciplinary Approaches to Osteoarthritis," "Preventing Injuries From the Ground Up," "Advances in Musculoskeletal Health," and "Public Health, Education, and Research in Integrative and Complementary and Alternative Medicine." For further details, visit https://apha.confex.com/apha/141am/webprogram/CHC.html.
New NBCE EVP Announced
Martin Kollasch, DC, has been announced as the new executive vice president of the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners. Dr. Kollasch assumes the position effective Jan. 1, 2014, succeeding longtime EVP Horace Elliott. Currently, Dr. Kollasch is the board's director of written examinations and director of international operations.
Chiropractic Fraternity Partners to Help Hurricane Sandy Victims
While the media may have moved on from Hurricane Sandy, the superstorm's impact on East Coast communities is still front and center for those who were affected. Fortunately, people continue to step up to help those in need. Case in point: Pi Kappa Chi Chiropractic Fraternity, which has partnered with New Beginnings Chiropractic Seminars to benefit Sandy victims. Pi Kappa Chi, which has student chapters at Palmer, Logan and TCC, and more than 3,500 alumni worldwide, is holding a reunion Oct. 24-27 at the New Beginnings Chiropractic Conference on the Jersey Shore. A portion of the alumni registration fee collected for the seminar will be donated to Drs. Bob Gleason (N.J.) and Victor Dolan (N.Y.), two chiropractors whose lives and practices have yet to return to normal following the hurricane.
