Doctors of chiropractic throughout the United States have reported receiving notices from Cigna Health Services that claims they submitted since September 2000 have been audited. Cigna is demanding refunds for "overpayments" on claims using CPT codes 97112, 97012, 97010 and others.

The World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA) has contacted legal experts and U.S. legislative officials to determine what recourse can be taken to stop Cigna's practice.

"We question the legality of a company to single out the chiropractic practice for these retroactive audits," stated Terry A. Rondberg, D.C., president of the WCA. "We will be exploring various means to protect D.C.s from these arbitrary and destructive measures."

The action by Cigna, however, is only one of many directed at the chiropractic profession by insurance companies, HMOs, PPOs, and other health care payors.

"It is clear that as these third party payors look for ways to decrease their payments even more, chiropractors will be the first target," Dr. Rondberg noted. "For this reason, we continue to urge all chiropractors to consider moving toward a partial or total cash practice. Numerous D.C.s have shown this can be a very profitable way to run a practice, and can significantly reduce the stress associated with dealing with insurance companies."