Study Finds Kids Follow Parents in Using CAM
Researchers at Metropolitan State University in Minneapolis who analyzed 2002 claims data from private health insurers in Washington found that more than 6% of children who were listed under their parent’s insurance claims visited a complementary or alternative medicine (CAM) professional during that year.

“Although use of chiropractic and massage was almost always for musculoskeletal complaints, acupuncture and naturopathic medicine filled a broader role,” note the study’s authors.

According to the study results, boys were less likely than girls to use CAM therapies, while children with cancer and low back pain were likely to try the treatments. In addition, the researchers noted that parental use of CAM was the leading factor associated with children’s use of the treatment.

NBCE Offers Computerized Exams for Licensed DCs
The National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE) has begun computerization of its optional Ethics and Boundaries (E&B) Examination for chiropractic practitioners. E&B assesses knowledge of ethics and boundaries issues potentially encountered in a chiropractic practice.

The examination, which will be administered six times per year at more than 300 Pearson Professional Centers throughout the United States, is the second exam made available for post licensure purposes. The first exam, the Special Purposes Examination for Chiropractic (SPEC), assesses the practitioner’s clinical competency. Formerly, these two exams were available only in pencil-and-paper format twice per year at 14 chiropractic college test sites.

The E&B and SPEC examinations are not intended for DCs who are entering practice for the first time. Instead, they are used by state licensing agencies to assess licensed or previously licensed DCs and protect the public. Before granting practice privileges, state boards may require DCs to demonstrate knowledge of where to set the boundaries pertaining to appropriate relationships and interaction in the DC’s office setting.

For more information, or sample tests, visit www.nbce.org.

Hearing Improved With Chiropractic
A case series published in the January 2006 issue of Chiropractic & Osteopathy documents the study subjects’ improvements in hearing after a chiropractic adjustment.

In this case study, 15 people with various degrees of hearing loss were tested for certain frequencies to establish their degree of hearing loss. The subjects were then given a single chiropractic adjustment and were subsequently retested for changes in their hearing.

According to the results, most of the participants experienced significant hearing improvement at various levels after one adjustment. Using a standardized testing process known as the Ventry & Weinstein criteria, six subjects had hearing restored at 40 dB (decibel or unit of loudness), seven subjects improved, and two had no change.

ACA Teams Up With PCPFS The American Chiropractic Association (ACA), along with the ACA Council on Sports Injuries and Physical Fitness, has been named as a “50th Anniversary Partner to Get America Moving” by the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (PCPFS). Through this partnership, the organizations will promote physical activity, fitness, and sports throughout 2006. “Doctors of chiropractic believe that prevention is the key to health and wellness,” says Richard G. Brassard, DC, ACA president. “Encourage your patients to improve their health and quality of life by incorporating more physical activity in their daily routine.” The ACA has developed more than 50 different patient-education pages to help DCs talk with their patients about simple ways to improve their health. The “Patient Page” fact sheets, which can be downloaded and printed for distribution in the DC practice, used at health fairs, or reformatted as news releases for local media, provide tips on how to improve health naturally and prevent problems before they start. For more information, visit www.acatoday.com/publications/tips..

CCGPP Best Practices Document Delayed
Release of the Council on Chiropractic Guidelines and Practice Parameters (CCGPP) Low Back “Best Practices” draft document, which was anticipated in February 2006, has been delayed due to the need for additional editing prior to its release. CCGPP is charged with developing and updating the document for use by DCs; their patients; students; faculty members; government agencies, including the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards; and third-party payors.

“We are determined to produce the most accurate, timely, and useful document possible,” says Wayne M. Whalen, DC, council chair. “Accordingly, we felt it was preferable to delay the release to accommodate several last minute edits and inclusions.”

The Low Back draft, the culmination of more than 3 years of collaborative work, includes a review of thousands of scientific articles. The article will be rated for quality and utility according to internationally recognized standards, and their results will be combined with expert consensus conclusions where literature evidence is lacking. The CCGPP Commission teams expect the document to provide a reliable, readily accessible and scientifically defensible tool for clinicians, patients, government regulators and others to make informed decisions about chiropractic low back care.

The draft of the chapter, which as of press time was expected to be available for stakeholder review by the end of March, is the first of seven condition-based chapters planned. Subsequent chapters on neck conditions, soft tissue, and thoracic spine, among others, are expected to be released sequentially about every other month.

As each draft chapter is released, it will be posted on the CCGPP Web site (www.ccgpp.org), and stakeholder input is requested. The Best Practices document will focus on the conditions most commonly encountered by practicing DCs. Subsequent chapters are expected to address less-common entities, and to update previous releases.

For further information, visit www.ccgpp.org.

Copay Equality Law Takes Effect
Legislation passed in North Carolina in 2005 that decreased the rates of insurance copayments for chiropractic patients came into effect March 1. The provisions will save patients up to 60% per visit and will also make chiropractic care more available to the general public—especially to those who live on fixed incomes.

“Although it might take a little time before you see a change, this is a huge win for chiropractic,” says Tom Schoenvogel, executive director of the North Carolina Chiropractic Association. “North Carolina is the first state in the country to have legislation in place regarding copay equality.”

Under this new law, insurance companies will treat chiropractic patients equally the same as patients who visit primary care medical doctors. Thus, chiropractic insurance copayments will emulate the copayments a patient pays for typical medical care visits.

Chiropractic patients, however, should be aware of the stipulations to the new law. If a patient’s plan is renewed in February 2006, for instance, the patient might not see a change in his or her co-payment until February, 2007.

Most plans will fall under the copayment law, but it is not certain how quickly all of these changes will take place. Chiropractors should encourage patients to verify their benefits with their particular insurance carriers.