On Jan. 10, 2003, scarcely two months after winning re-election, California Governor Gray Davis introduced a budget proposal for the 2003-2004 fiscal year that slashed Medi-Cal expenditures by $3.6 billion and cut numerous optional benefits provided to Medi-Cal recipients, including the elimination of chiropractic services. The proposal called for a 5-percent reduction in Medi-Cal reimbursements to providers, in addition to a 10-percent reduction proposed by Davis in December.
A total of 18 benefits are scheduled to be cut in Davis' budget, including chiropractic; acupuncture; adult dental services; artificial limbs; hearing aids; hospice care; independent rehabilitation; medical supplies; occupational therapy; optometry; physical therapy; podiatry; and psychology.
An interesting question is why chiropractic services would be cut, especially considering the comparatively small amount of money that would be saved initially by removing it from the budget, and the large expenditures such a cut would eventually create. According to an Associated Press article, eliminating chiropractic would save the state only about $100,000 per fiscal quarter, compared to approximately $666,000 per quarter by removing acupuncture and over $48 million per quarter for adult dental services.1
Longtime advocates of chiropractic, however, should not be surprised at Governor Davis' actions, considering his previous animosity toward the profession. For the first three-and-a-half years of his tenure as governor, he chose not to appoint anyone to the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners (CBCE), essentially rendering the board defunct for over seven months. Only after Dynamic Chiropractic began reporting on the situation did Davis act, and even then, the people he appointed wouldn't necessarily be the first choices to oversee one-sixth of the chiropractic doctors in the country.2,3
Mr. Davis eventually appointed one doctor of chiropractic and one consumer member to the CBCE on March 21, 2002. The consumer member, John Marder, is the managing partner with the law firm of Manning & Marder, Kass, Ellrod, Ramirez, LLP. In the past, the firm has worked for Allstate, an insurance company not known for its friendliness toward chiropractors.
The chiropractic appointee, Dr. Ronald Hayes, used to be a member of a state chiropractic association, but is now a member of the California Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
According to the AP, California now faces a budget deficit estimated at up to $21 billion over the next 18 months.
One is left to wonder which group Governor Davis has ignored more since being elected: California's citizens, or its chiropractors.
References
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
