Why Every Business Needs an Acupuncturist

Although the novel coronavirus has put in-person work on hold for months and will likely expand the remote-work pool permanently, millions upon millions of workers have returned to work or will progressively do so in the near future. And new research suggests acupuncturists should join those millions at their workplaces or workplace sponsored-clinics across the country. Here's why.

A study published in the Journal of Acupuncture and Integrative Medicine (Davis JA, et al.) has found that workers who receive employer-sponsored acupuncture are:

• Overwhelmingly satisfied with their care (93 percent satisfied)
• Accrue significantly lower health care costs ($40 or less co-pay per visit vs. $75-$125 average out-of-pocket fees per visit in the community)
• Are significantly less likely to take opioids for pain compared to the national average (only one in 36 employees receiving acupuncture compared vs. one in five U.S. adults in the general population: "Less than 3% of members without cancer in employer-sponsored integrative care clinics compared to 20% in the community," according to findings).

The study reviewed the experiences of nearly 1,800 workers (average age: 37 years; 59 percent women) who initiated acupuncture at one of 11 employer-sponsored health centers over a one-year period, yielding data on outcomes for 8,991 total visits (average number of visits per patient: 5.5). That data was compared with outcomes data from providers in the community.

Of note, opioid prescriptions filled by workers who received employer-sponsored acupuncture services were typically for cough suppressants, not pain relief; even though most acupuncture visits were for musculoskeletal complaints / pain.