National Public Health Week Provides a Platform for Protecting Chiropractic Care
We are now two days into National Public Health Week 2015, and awareness is being spread throughout the nation regarding a wide variety of healthcare topics. The American Public Health Association has initiated this campaign as a way to both inform those who are less familiar with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and to keep those with knowledge of this law updated on how the law affects our nation’s healthcare system.
Additionally, the National Public Health Week campaign is an attempt to shed light on the vast inequalities that we see in access to healthcare across the United States.
The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) has been an active member in supporting this campaign and has used it as an opportunity for advocacy in terms of the law’s relationship with chiropractic care. Specifically, the law maintains that patients have the right to choose their own care providers and make informed decisions regarding their care pathway. Section 2706(a) of the PPACA maintains that chiropractic doctors, acupuncturists, Oriental physicians, homeopaths, massage therapists, and other practitioners of alternative medicine are included in this designation.
The American Chiropractic Association asserts that there is frequent neglect with respect to this aspect of the PPACA and that there are countless scenarios in which chiropractic care is discriminated against in terms of patient care decisions. Members of the American Chiropractic Association believe that attention to chiropractic care is an integral element of healthcare reform. Thus, the preservation of Section 2706(a) is necessary to move towards the development of an effective and efficient healthcare system for our country.
Many are concerned that if chiropractic care is overlooked in the care selection process, the law’s effectiveness is diminished and chiropractic care providers are excluded from the law’s protection and inclusion in this regard. National Public Health Week has a broad scope of goals and objectives, but the American Chiropractic Association is taking action to defend their practice at an opportune time.
Used under Creative Commons Licensing courtesy of CA Dept of Insurance