Esprit de Corps

The nine trapped Quecreek, Penn, miners captured the nation with their acts of heroism and courage, while looking death in the face. What impressed me most was how they worked together during desperate times. Hendrik Hertzberg sums it up in The New Yorker:¹ “Nonunion though they were, the Quecreek miners conspicuously displayed the noblest of all trade-union virtues: solidarity. They prayed together; they shared the single sandwich that was their only food; they lashed themselves together so that in death their bodies would not be separated.”

While reading this, I was reminded of the American Chiropractic Association’s (ACA) press conference regarding the status of the lawsuit against Virginia Trigon/Blue Cross Blue Shield (henceforth Trigon) and other legislative and public relations issues at the Florida Chiropractic Association National Conference & Exposition on August 17. Representing the ACA were Executive Vice President Garrett F. Cuneo; Vice President Donald J. Krippendorf, DC; South Florida Delegate John J. Gentile, DC; and North Florida Delegate Kenneth Dougherty, DC.

Cuneo stated that the Trigon lawsuit has done more to unite the profession. For the very first time, leaders from every chiropractic organization united behind the National Chiropractic Legal Action Fund at The Parkers Seminars, Las Vegas, January 2002. He reported that although more than $4.1 million was raised, more has been spent not only for the Trigon case, but also for the current litigation against the US Department of Health and Human Services, which resulted in the Operational Policy Letter #23 victory.

Cuneo said that the “ACA usually does not become involved in state legal issues, but in the Trigon case, the issues transcend the problems of one state, and the state organization would not have the financial resources for such a prolonged legal action.”

Although all chiropractic organizations have united, only 11% of the chiropractic profession has backed the Trigon lawsuit, according to Gentile.

When I first heard that figure, I had to ask him to repeat it to make sure I had not heard incorrectly! I asked whether chiropractors knew some of the egregious actions and statements by the opposition, such as the Trigon admission statement: “Market demand has justified making some lower payments to limited-license providers (doctors of chiropractic) than to [MDs] for procedures that are billed under the same CPT code; the procedure performed by an [MD]...often is not identical to the procedure performed by a limited-license provider under the same CPT code because the [MD] has a higher degree of education, expertise, training, skill, and medical knowledge...”
Also, a Trigon representative, at the meeting between the ACA, VCA, and Trigon, said, “If chiropractors are willing to accept less, why shouldn’t Trigon give less?” And a recent American Medical Association (AMA) newsletter praised the relationship between Trigon and the Virginia Medical Association.

If the medical definition of subluxation is completely different from the chiropractic definition, as noted by Krippendorf, how can MDs be allowed to make policies or govern anything related to the chiropractic profession?

Also, does 89% of the chiropractic profession realize what is at stake in the Trigon lawsuit? That there is a cap of $500 for spinal manipulations, payment for only the lowest level of the CMT service, a 40% difference in fees paid to DCs as compared to other health care providers, and nonexistent provisions for CA services?

The plaintiffs in Wilk vs AMA, Chester Wilk, DC, Michael Pedigo, DC, James Bryden, DC, and Patricia Arthur, DC, released a statement regarding the Trigon case: “Though the name and face have changed, this attack on chiropractic is virtually the same one we encountered...more than 30 years ago. We hope the profession will apply now what we learned then: Our divisiveness will be the victory of our opponents; our solidarity will be their defeat. Any doctor, organization, supplier, college, or other institution with a stake in the future of chiropractic should join in this historic mission.”

President Bush said about the nine Quecreek miners, “...it was their determination to stick together and to comfort each other that really defines kind of a new spirit that’s prevalent in our country—that when one of us suffers, all of us suffer; that in order to succeed, we’ve got to be united; that by working together, we can achieve big objectives and big goals.”¹

Now is not the time to become comfortable and accept the status quo. Let the Quecreek Nine be a shining example to chiropractors everywhere.

Miwon Seo
mseo@medpubs.com

Reference
1. Hertzberg H. Mine shaft. The New Yorker. 2002;78(24):57–58.