They're finally listening to me. I have written quite a bit in this space about the need for all the different factions in chiropractic to put aside their differences and work together for the good of the profession.

I know that the discussion about the need for chiropractic unity has been going on for a long time. But there were signs in the past couple of years that the profession was really waking up to how much could be done if everyone worked together. A great example occurred in 2006, when chiropractors mounted a big grassroots lobbying campaign that helped defeat S 1955, proposed legislation that threatened to eliminate state-enacted health care mandates for chiropractic and other care. Another example is the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress, which brought chiropractors and chiropractic groups together to pool their resources and launch an advertising and public relations campaign in major markets of the country.

But two recent events show that the profession might be taking its collective strength to a new level. The first event took place on September 18, when representatives from several chiropractic organizations met in Washington, DC, for a daylong chiropractic summit sponsored by the American Chiropractic Association. The group, which included the Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research, the Council on Chiropractic Guidelines and Practice Parameters (CCGPP), the World Federation of Chiropractic, and several other groups, came up with four areas of concern that they deemed most pressing to the profession today. It's encouraging to see these groups come together for the good of the profession.

The group decided that the most important issue was "Medicare reform and national health care reform that results in full and equitable inclusion of DCs and the full spectrum of their professional services/care." The other issues were

• practice satisfaction, self-esteem, and cultural authority for DCs;
• profitability/viability of chiropractic practice; and
• single mind, single voice through collaboration of the entire chiropractic profession on priority issues.

What is the top issue facing the chiropractic profession today? Take our poll

I agree with the group's choice of a top issue, but I think we need to focus more on the national health care reform portion. Prompt payment for the services you provide is the top issue going on right now, in my opinion. We should not rest easy until corporations and the public accept chiropractic care as much as they accept the importance of going to the dentist twice per year.

That leads me to discuss the second recent news item illustrating how this profession is pulling together. An October 9 joint letter from various chiropractic groups to United Healthcare (UHC) protested UHC's recent statement that "... chiropractic services for treatment of children and adolescents is unproven and services for treatment of headaches is unproven." The authors of the letter included groups that don't always agree with one another, such as the CCGPP and the International Chiropractors Association. But to their credit, they pulled together in opposition to UHC's statement.

I have also written in this space that the various groups in chiropractic should celebrate their differences. But it's great to see members of your profession coming together when important issues call for it. I hope to see more of that in the future.

Daryl Lubinsky
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