Acupuncture Today has learned that an additional two members of Congress have signed on to become co-sponsors of HR 818, the Federal Acupuncture Coverage Act of 2005, introduced by Rep. Maurice Hinchey of New York. The new co-sponsors are:
At present, 35 members of Congress from 17 states and the territory of Guam have signed up as co-sponsors of HR 818. The purpose of the bill is to amend Social Security Act to provide for coverage of qualified acupuncturist services under part B of the Medicare program, and to amend title 5 of the United States Code to provide for coverage of such services under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program.
For more information on HR 818, visit http://thomas.loc.gov and enter "HR 818" in the "Search Bill Text" field.
Mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) affects more than 15% of the U.S. population but evades most practitioners’ radar. Just five years ago, it wasn’t even on my radar, despite already having 20 years of experience as a clinician at that time. The more I dug (similar to leaky gut and post-COVID syndrome), the more I found my patients were suffering from this disorder.
Research supports the effectiveness of selecting the distal acupuncture points for the treatment of microtrauma and for relieving pain, particularly in cases of chronic shoulder pain. But to make the treatment results long-lasting, clinical experience and research suggest that instead of treating the most painful structure first, we identify the inhibited driver, restore reliable recruitment, confirm it with immediate re-testing, and only then address the painful area as a branch of a deeper pattern.
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The motivation behind our practice of medicine is important, impacting not just our experience but also the experiences of those we treat. It is perhaps for this reason that the aspiration to help not just some, but all beings heal, has historically been an important part of the medical tradition. To explain this, we need to consider how medicine is interwoven with other social domains.